*   JAN  24  1906  * 

Division  B  X  73  IS 
Sectioa  .^253 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
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THE  DISCIPLES  OF  CHRIST 


The  Story  of  the  Churches 


The  Disciples  of  Christ 


/By 

ERRETT  GATES,  Ph.  D. 
Associate  in  Church  History^  University  of  Chicago 

Author  of**  The  Early  Relation  and  Separation 
of  Baptists  and  Disciples  " 


NEW  YORK:  THE  BAKER  &  TAYLOR  CO. 
33-37  East  Seventeenth  St.,  Union  Sq.  North 


Copyright,  1905, 

By 

The  Baker  &  Taylor  Co. 
Published,  September,  igoj 


Publishers'  Note 

The  aim  of  this  series  is  to  furnish  a  uniform 
set  of  church  histories,  brief  but  complete, 
and  designed  to  instruct  the  average  church 
member  in  the  origin,  development,  and  his- 
tory of  the  various  denominations.  Many 
church  histories  have  been  issued  for  all  de- 
nominations, but  they  have  usually  been 
volumes  of  such  size  as  to  discourage  any 
but  students  of  church  history.  Each  vol- 
ume of  this  series,  all  of  which  will  be 
written  by  leading  historians  of  the  various 
denominations,  will  not  only  interest  the 
members  of  the  denomination  about  which 
it  is  written,  but  will  prove  interesting  to 
members  of  other  denominations  as  well 
who  wish  to  learn  something  of  their  fellow 
workers.  The  volumes  will  be  bound  uni- 
formly, and  when  the  series  is  complete  will 
make  a  most  valuable  history  of  the  Chris- 
tian church. 


Contents 


CHAP.  PAGE 

I.    The  Campbells  ....  7 
II.    Religious  Conditions  in  Scotland 

AND  Ireland    .        .        .  .17 

III.  The    Christian    Association  of 

Washington    .        .        .        •  33 

IV.  Barton  W.  Stone  and  the  Spring- 

field Presbytery     ...  64 

V.    The  Union  with  the  Baptists      .  80 

VI.    Alexander  Campbell  as  a  Baptist,  100 
VII.    The  Reformers  Among  the  Bap- 
tists      .        .        .        .  .127 
VIII.    The  Separation  of  the  Reformers 

from  the  Baptists    .        .  .154 
IX.    The  Union  of  the  Reformers  as 

Disciples  of  Christ         .        .  177 

X.    Early  Growth  and  Organization  212 

XI.    The  Rise  OF  Internal  Controversy,  235 

XII.    Missionary  Organization    .        .  259 

XIII.  Evangelism,    Journalism,  Educa- 

tion AND  Church  Growth       .  277 

XIV.  Recent  Tendencies  and  Problems,  304 
Bibliography  .  .  .  '335 
Index  339 

5 


The  Disciples  of  Christ 


CHAPTER  I 

THE  CAMPBELLS 

The  Disciples  of  Christ  will  complete  the 
first  hundred  years  of  their  history  as  a  dis- 
tinct religious  movement  in  1909.  Their 
rise  in  1809  is  marked  by  the  withdrawal 
of  Thomas  Campbell  from  the  Seceder 
Presbyterian  church  in  Western  Pennsyl- 
vania and  the  publication  of  the  so-called 
Declaration  and  Address. 

Thomas  Campbell  was  born  in  County 
Down,  Ireland,  February  i,  1763.  His 
ancestors  were  the  Campbells  of  Argyle- 
shire,  Scotland,  a  clan  famous  in  the  polit- 
ical and  military  history  of  the  country. 
He  was  the  eldest  of  a  family  of  four  sons, 
all  of  whom  showed  marked  religious  dis— 
7 


8         The  Disciples  of  Christ 


positions  and  took  leading  parts  later  in 
life  in  local  religious  affairs.  The  father 
belonged  to  the  Church  of  England,  and 
always  preferred  to  worship  after  the  Epis- 
copal ritual,  but  his  sons  turned  with  greater 
sympathy  and  pleasure  to  the  simpler  wor- 
ship of  the  Covenanters  and  Seceder  Pres- 
byterians. Very  early  in  life  Thomas  passed 
through  a  deep  religious  experience,  which 
set  at  rest  his  fears  of  the  divine  displeasure 
and  gave  him  assurance  of  salvation  and 
acceptance  with  God.  His  religious  experi- 
ence conformed  to  the  theological  teach- 
ing which  he  met  and  accepted  in  attend- 
ance at  Presbyterian  churches.  It  was  of 
r  that  serious  Calvinistic  sort  which  laid  par- 
ticular emphasis  upon  the  divine  activity  in 
conversion.  The  spiritual  monitions  at- 
tending his  conversion  were  such  as  not 
only  to  give  him  assurances  of  salvation, 
but  to  lay  upon  him  the  duty  of  consecrat- 
ing himself  to  the  ministry  of  the  gospel. 
The  moment  of  his  conversion  was  also  the 


The  Campbells  9 

moment  of  his  dedication  to  the  min- 
istry. 

He  naturally  turned  to  the  Seceder  church 
as  a  sphere  for  the  exercise  of  his  ministry, 
but  the  proposal  met  with  the  disfavor  of 
his  father;  and  being  under  age  he  yielded 
for  the  time  to  the  wishes  of  his  father  and 
continued  his  work  as  a  teacher  in  an  Eng- 
lish academy  which  he  had  established  in 
the  less  enlightened  regions  of  Ireland. 
Hitherto  his  education  had  not  passed  be- 
yond a  good  English  schooling,  at  a  mili- 
tary regimental  school  near  Newry,  County 
Down,  and  what  by  his  native  genius  and 
aptitude  for  study,  he  had  acquired  by  self- 
education  and  in  the  practice  of  teaching; 
but  upon  his  return  from  teaching  in  the 
central  parts  of  Ireland,  he  was  taken  under 
the  patronage  of  a  Mr.  Kinley,  who  en- 
couraged him  in  his  desire  to  enter  the 
ministry  and  gave  him  financial  assistance 
to  continue  his  education  in  the  University 
of  Glasgow.    After  completing  his  literary 


10       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

studies  in  the  University,  he  entered  the 
theological  school  of  the  Seceders  at  Whith- 
burn,  then  in  charge  of  Dr.  Archibald  Bruce. 
He  completed  his  theological  studies  in  five 
sessions  of  eight  weeks  each  and  was 
licensed  to  preach  among  the  Anti-Burgher 
Seceders,  as  a  probationer,  under  the  super- 
vision of  the  Synod. 

Very  little  is  recorded  of  his  early  life  as 
a  preacher.  He  was  always  obliged  to  carry 
on  his  teaching  to  eke  out  his  meagre  salary 
as  a  preacher  and  provide  for  an  increasing 
family.  He  was  married  to  Jane  Corneigle, 
of  French  Huguenot  descent,  in  County  An- 
trim, Ireland,  in  1787.  Their  first  child,  born 
in  1788,  was  a  son,  whom  they  named  Alex- 
ander. The  two  men,  father  and  son,  were 
destined  to  be,  the  one  the  inaugurator, 
the  other  the  promoter  of  the  religious 
movement  whose  history  is  the  theme  of 
this  work.  As  the  son  of  Thomas  Camp- 
bell and  Jane  Corneigle,  Alexander  Camp- 
bell had  the  best  blood  of  Scotland  and  of 


The  Campbells  11 


France  flowing  in  his  veins.  He  is  said  to 
have  had  a  striking  resemblance  to  his 
mother,  both  in  character  and  physical 
appearance,  while  she  possessed  all  that 
we  have  come  to  associate  as  best  with  the 
French  Huguenot  character. 

The  father  accepted  the  pastorate  of  the 
Seceder  church  at  Ahorey,  County  Armagh, 
and  moved  his  family  to  a  place  called  Rich 
Hill.  The  son  was  about  ten  years  of  age 
when  this  took  place,  and  so  far  had  given 
no  evidence  of  anything  unusual  in  his  in- 
tellectual powers.  He  had  received  the 
rudiments  of  his  early  education  under  his 
father  and  in  the  academy  of  his  uncles, 
but  no  scholastic  regimen  could  subdue  the 
native  physical  strength  and  buoyant  spirits 
of  the  boy.  He  was  well  on  towards  six- 
teen years  of  age  before  he  was  distin- 
guished by  anything  but  his  irrepressible 
love  of  sport  and  out-of-doors  exercise. 
He  was  simply  a  normal,  healthy  boy,  with 
a  good  mind  and  a  well  disposed  moral 


12        Ihe  Disciples  of  Christ 

nature.  Of  early  piety  and  precocious  re- 
ligious experience  we  hear  nothing.  His 
restless  physical  spirit  must  have  fretted 
more  than  once  under  the  long  religious  ex- 
ercises of  his  Seceder  home  and  church,  for 
it  was  the  rule  of  the  church  prescribed  by 
the  synod  that  "the  minister  should  wor- 
ship God  in  his  family  by  singing,  reading 
and  prayer,  morning  and  evening;  that  he 
should  catechise  and  instruct  them  at  least 
once  a  week  in  religion;  endeavoring  to 
cause  every  member  to  pray  in  secret  morn- 
ing and  evening."  Besides  this  it  was  the 
rule  in  the  home  that  "every  member 
should  memorize,  during  each  day,  some 
portion  of  the  Bible,  to  be  recited  at  even- 
ing worship,  and  each  again  rehearsed  on 
the  evening  of  the  Lord's  day;  that  every 
one  should  go  to  meeting,  and  on  returning 
home  give  an  account  of  the  text  and  of  the 
discourse  preached." 

Such  discipline  had  its  effect  upon  the 
boy.    His  intellectual  and  religious  awaken- 


The  Campbells  13 

ing  finally  came  when  he  was  about  eight- 
een years  of  age.  They  seem  to  have  been 
coincident.  He  entered  with  zeal  and  effi- 
ciency into  the  work  of  assisting  his  father 
in  the  academy.  He  began  to  experience 
"great  concern  in  regard  to  his  own  salva- 
tion." In  a  later  account  of  this  period  he 
says:  "  From  the  time  that  1  could  read  the 
Scriptures,  I  became  convinced  that  Jesus 
was  the  Son  of  God.  I  was  also  fully  per- 
suaded that  I  was  a  sinner,  and  must  obtain 
pardon  through  the  merits  of  Christ  or  be 
lost  forever.  This  caused  me  great  distress 
of  soul  and  I  had  much  exercise  of  mind 
under  the  awakenings  of  a  guilty  conscience. 
Finally,  after  many  strugglings,  I  was  enabled 
to  put  my  trust  in  the  Saviour,  and  to  feel  my 
reliance  on  him  as  the  only  Saviour  of  sinners. 
From  the  moment  I  was  able  to  feel  this  re- 
liance on  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  I  obtained 
and  enjoyed  peace  of  mind."  He  was  re- 
ceived as  a  member  of  his  father's  church  at 
Ahorey  and  under  the  solicitation  of  his 


14       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

father  began  to  devote  time  to  theological 
studies.  It  was  not  until  later,  however, 
that  the  son  dedicated  himself  to  the  ministry 
of  the  gospel,  though  it  was  the  father's 
wish  that  he  do  so  from  the  beginning  of 
his  life. 

The  labors  of  the  father  were  divided  be- 
tween his  duties  as  pastor  of  the  church  at 
Ahorey  and  superintendent  of  his  academy 
at  Rich  Hill,  where  he  lived.  His  first  inter- 
est was  always  the  religious  interest.  He 
was  a  careful  observer  of  and  interested 
actor  in  all  the  religious  affairs  of  his 
country  and  time.  He  was  possessed  by 
nature  of  a  broad  Christian  spirit  which 
transcended  the  sectarian  boundaries  of  his 
own  denomination.  The  "  occasional  hear- 
ing "  of  ministers  of  other  religious  bodies, 
reluctantly  granted  by  his  own  denomina- 
tion, and  then  only  when  there  was  no 
meeting  at  the  same  hour  and  in  the  same 
place  in  one  of  their  own  churches,  was 
eagerly  seized  upon  by  Thomas  Campbell 


The  Campbells  \^ 


and  improved.  He  was  a  frequent  attendant 
at  the  evening  meetings  of  the  congrega- 
tion of  Independents  at  Rich  Hill,  and  was 
on  the  most  cordial  terms  with  them  as 
neighbors.  He  was  found  entering  into  co- 
operation with  all  religious  movements 
whenever  opportunity  was  offered.  He 
became  a  member  of  the  "  Society  for  Prop- 
agating the  Gospel  at  Home,"  organized 
by  the  Haldanes  and  composed  for  the  most 
part  of  members  of  the  Church  of  England, 
whose  object  was  the  arousing  of  a  deeper 
religious  spirit  throughout  the  British  Isles 
to  counteract  the  deadening  influence  of 
French  infidelity  and  liberalism. 

He  felt  that  the  religious  need  of  the  times 
was  a  union  of  all  the  people  of  God.  It 
must  have  pained  his  soul  to  witness  the 
divisions  going  on  in  the  two  branches  of 
the  Seceder  church  of  which  he  was  a  mem- 
ber. The  story  of  the  division  and  subdi- 
vision of  this  church,  the  resulting  nar- 
rowness and  bitterness  of   spirit  mani- 


l6       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

fested  towards  each  other,  is  a  fitting 
background  against  which  to  understand 
the  spirit  and  motives  of  Thomas  Camp- 
bell. 


CHAPTER  II 


RELIGIOUS   CONDITIONS   IN  SCOTLAND  AND  IRE- 
LAND 

In  Thomas  Campbell's  time  sectarianism 
and  religious  bigotry  had  gone  to  seed  in 
the  Seceder  church.  It  was  conceived  in 
pride  and  bitterness,  born  in  narrowness, 
and  grew  up  in  exclusiveness.  Its  sources 
lie  far  back  in  the  history  of  the  Scottish 
church. 

When  the  Reformation  suddenly  invaded 
Scotland  in  the  year  1560,  it  found  the 
Scottish  people  and  the  ruling  nobility  ready 
for  it.  "The  Estates  convened  in  August, 
the  Calvinistic  confession  of  faith  was  ap- 
proved, the  Roman  Catholic  religion  was 
abolished,  and  the  administering  of  the 
mass,  or  attendance  upon  it,  was  forbid- 
den— the  penalty  for  the  third  offense  being 
death."  "On  the  morning  of  the  25th  of 
17 


i8       The  Disciples  of  Christ 


August,  1560,  the  Romish  hierarchy  was  su- 
preme; in  the  evening  of  the  same  day,  Cal- 
vinistic  Protestantism  was  established  in  its 
stead."  The  nobility  and  the  common 
people  joined  in  their  desire  to  see  the  over- 
throw of  Roman  Catholicism,  and  made 
common  cause  against  the  king  and  church. 
The  nobility  feared  the  power  and  craved 
the  vast  wealth  of  the  Roman  church,  while 
the  people  longed  for  a  purer  ministry,  a 
worship  in  their  own  language  and  a  voice 
in  the  affairs  of  their  parish  churches.  It 
was  an  expression  of  the  democratic  spirit 
in  religion. 

No  form  of  Protestantism  so  completely 
satisfied  this  spirit  as  the  Presbyterian. 
John  Knox  had  gone  to  Geneva  and  sat  at 
the  feet  of  John  Calvin.  He  brought  back 
to  his  native  Scotland  and  recommended  to 
his  people  both  the  doctrine  and  the  order 
of  Calvinistic  Presbyterianism.  They  found 
these  to  their  liking.  Presbyterianism  was 
essentially  democratic,  and  gave  to  the  peo- 


Conditions  in  Scotland  and  Ireland  19 

pie  the  right  to  choose  their  own  pastors 
and  a  representation  in  the  government  of 
the  church.  It  was  impossible  that  the  old 
order  could  be  completely  wiped  out  and 
destroyed  in  root  and  branch.  Some  roots 
remained.  One  of  the  strongest  to  remain 
was  the  institution  of  patronage  which  the 
nobility  was  interested  to  maintain.  When 
the  property  and  revenues  of  the  old  church 
fell  at  one  stroke  into  the  hands  of  the  re- 
forming party,  the  nobles  laid  claim  to  it  as 
a  part  of  their  estates  which  had  been 
alienated  by  pious  ancestors  through  dona- 
tion and  bequest  to  the  church.  It  properly 
escheated  to  the  owners  of  the  estates  from 
which  it  was  originally  set  aside  to  main- 
tain parish  churches.  The  nobles  had  their 
way  in  spite  of  the  protest  of  the  religious 
leaders.  Parish  livings  for  the  support  of 
the  pastors  now  fell  into  the  hands  of 
nobles  and  landowners  who  exercised  the 
right  of  patronage  or  presentation  to  living. 
It  was  impossible  that  a  pure  Presbytery 


20       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

could  be  grafted  upon  this  old  stump  of  pat- 
ronage. The  people  might  choose  a  man 
to  be  their  pastor,  but  if  he  did  not  suit  the 
patron,  the  holder  of  living,  who  might  be 
a  Romanist,  an  Episcopalian,  or  a  Presby- 
terian, the  chosen  pastor  could  not  settle 
with  his  parish. 

After  more  than  a  century  of  struggle  on 
the  part  of  the  Scottish  people  to  keep  their 
Presbyterianism  against  the  encroachments 
of  English  Episcopacy,  they  were  finally 
victorious  at  the  time  of  the  Revolution 
Settlement  of  1690.  By  this  settlement 
Presbyterianism  was  constituted  by  act  of 
Parliament  the  established  religion  of  Scot- 
land, and  with  the  overthrow  of  Episcopacy 
went  patronage.  But  only  for  a  time.  It 
came  back  by  act  of  the  English  Parliament, 
which  now  included  the  Scottish  Parlia- 
ment, in  the  year  1712,  and  was  destined  to 
remain,  the  principal  cause  of  all  the  troub- 
les of  the  Scottish  church,  until  finally 
•abolished  in  1874. 


Conditions  in  Scotland  and  Ireland  21 

It  was  incident  to  the  troubles  growing 
out  of  restored  patronage  that  the  Seceder 
church  arose  in  Scotland.  The  system  of 
patronage  completely  nullified  the  free 
choice  of  the  pastor  by  the  people.  The 
patron  took  the  initiative  and  presented  as  a 
pastor  for  the  church  a  man  to  his  own 
liking,  and  was  not  necessarily  governed  by 
the  desires  of  the  people  or  the  needs  of  the 
place.  Private  and  pecuniary  consider- 
ations very  often  operated  in  the  presenta- 
tion. The  people  were  obliged  to  acquiesce 
in  the  appointment  or  go  without  a  pastor. 

It  was  the  conflicting  interests  and  wishes 
of  patrons  and  people  that  often  came  be- 
fore the  presbyteries  or  assemblies  for  set- 
tlement. An  attempt  on  the  part  of  the 
Assembly  to  remedy  the  evil  of  vacant 
parishes  by  obliging  presbyteries  to  induct 
pastors  on  call  of  heritors,  if  Protestant,  and 
elders,  (in  cases  where  patrons  refused  to 
make  a  presentation  within  six  months 
after  a  vacancy  that  they  might  obtain  the 


22       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

income  for  themselves,)  called  forth  a  bitter 
protest  against  the  action  of  the  Assembly 
by  Ebenezer  Erskine,  in  a  sermon  delivered 
as  retiring  moderator  of  the  Synod  of  Perth 
and  Stirling.  He  was  rebuked  by  the  Synod 
for  offensive  utterances  in  the  sermon.  He 
appealed  to  the  Assembly  of  1733  against 
the  rebuke  of  the  Synod  and  was  joined  by 
three  other  ministers.  The  Assembly  ap- 
proved the  action  of  the  Synod  and  ordered 
that  Erskine  be  rebuked  before  the  bar  of 
the  Assembly.  He  refused  to  submit  in 
silence  to  the  action,  and  was  called  on  to 
retract,  failing  which  in  a  year  he  was  sus- 
pended from  the  ministry  of  the  church. 
The  protesters  seceded  from  the  established 
church  and  constituted  themselves  into  a 
Presbytery.  When  the  Assembly  relented 
a  year  later  and  opened  the  door  for  their 
return  by  removing  all  censure  and  restor- 
ing their  names  to  the  ministerial  roll,  they 
stubbornly  refused  to  return.  They  went 
on  organizing  churches  and  constituting 


Conditions  in  Scotland  and  Ireland  23 

presbyteries,  and  by  1742  constituted  the 
first  synod  out  of  three  presbyteries  and 
thirty  congregations.  The  ranks  of  the  Se- 
ceders  were  from  time  to  time  increased  by 
withdrawals  from  the  establishment  of 
churches  and  members  who  had  been  out- 
raged by  the  violent  intrusion  of  obnoxious 
pastors  upon  them.  Rather  than  submit, 
they  seceded.  The  secession  profited  for  a 
long  time  by  the  workings  of  the  law  of 
patronage. 

These  Seceders,  as  they  were  called,  be- 
gan to  regard  themselves  as  the  true  church 
of  God  in  Scotland  and  identified  themselves 
with  the  church  of  the  first  and  second 
reformations.  When  George  Whitfield 
came  to  Scotland  they  demanded  that  he 
confine  his  ministrations  to  their  churches; 
and  when  asked  "  why,"  they  said,  ''be- 
cause we  are  the  Lord's  people."  "Are 
there  no  other  Lord's  people  but  you.^"  he 
inquired.  "  And  supposing  all  others  are  the 
devil's  people;  certainly,  they  have  the  more 


24       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

need  to  be  preached  to."  August  4,  1741, 
was  proclaimed  throughout  their  body  as  a 
day  of  fasting  and  humiliation  for  the 
countenance  given  to  Whittleld. 

It  was  not  long  before  strife  broke  out  in 
their  own  ranks  over  the  lawfulness  of  the 
oath  administered  to  burgesses  of  towns. 
Some  held  that  a  Seceder  who  happened  to 
be  a  burgess  could  not  consistently  swear 
"to  profess  and  allow  with  his  heart  the 
true  religion  presently  professed  within  the 
realm  and  authorized  by  the  laws  thereof," 
without  promising  to  support  the  church 
from  which  they  had  seceded,  and  now  re- 
garded as  "a  household  of  Satan."  Con- 
sequently they  divided  in  1747  into  Burghers 
and  Anti-Burghers.  Each  proclaimed  itself 
to  be  the  true  church  and  anathematized  the 
other. 

The  Burgher  branch  of  the  Seceders  was 
for  a  long  time  stirred  with  dissension  as  to 
the  power  of  the  civil  magistrate  in  relig- 
ious matters.    They  divided  on  the  question 


Conditions  in  Scotland  and  Ireland  25 

in  1796  into  Old  Lights  and  New  Lights. 
A  similar  division  took  place  in  the  Anti- 
Burgher  branch  in  1806.  There  were  now 
four  distinct  parties  of  Seceders.  The 
divisions  of  the  parent  body  in  Scotland 
were  transferred  to  its  new  home  in  Ireland. 
Thomas  Campbell  became  a  member  of  the 
Old  Light,  Anti-Burgher  branch  of  the 
Seceders. 

All  branches  grew  in  narrowness  and  bit- 
terness of  spirit,  as  their  ranks  diminished 
in  numbers  through  division.  In  1798  the 
Anti-Burgher  Synod  forbade  the  people  to 
attend  or  give  countenance  to  public  preach- 
ing by  any  who  were  not  of  their  commun- 
ion; and  a  year  afterwards  actually  deposed 
and  excommunicated  one  of  its  ministers 
for  having  heard  Rowland  Hill  and  James 
Haldane  preach."  A  case  is  on  record 
where  the  Burgher  Synod  cited  one  of  its 
members  before  it,  for  working  as  a  mason 
on  an  Episcopal  chapel  in  Glasgow,  and  de- 
creed that  he  was  highly  censurable  and 


26       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

"ought  not  to  be  admitted  to  any  of  the 
seals  of  the  covenant  till  he  profess  his  sor- 
row for  the  offense  and  scandal  that  he  had 
given  and  been  guilty  of." 

The  spirit  of  bigotry  and  sectarian  ani- 
mosity was  not  confined  to  the  Seceders. 
The  established  church  herself  and  all  dis- 
senting bodies,  including  the  Presbytery  of 
Relief,  finally  narrowed  the  grace  of  God 
and  his  covenanted  mercies  to  their  own 
bodies.  To  the  genial  Christian  spirit  of 
such  a  man  as  Thomas  Campbell,  the 
spectacle  of  these  divisions  and  animosities 
between  Christians  seemed  more  than  child- 
ish; they  were  sinful.  As  he  reflected  upon 
them  he  must  have  inquired  the  reason  for 
them  and  sought  a  remedy.  His  own 
church  was  rent  asunder  before  his  eyes 
and  he  was  forced  to  take  sides  on  a  ques- 
tion which  had  no  meaning  in  Ireland 
where  the  burgess  oath  never  had  been  in 
use.  So  needless  seemed  the  perpetuation 
of  the  division  between  Burghers  and  Anti- 


Conditions  in  Scotland  and  Ireland  27 

Burghers  on  Irish  soil,  that  he  led  in  an 
effort  to  unite  the  two  bodies  in  1805,  but 
failed  through  the  unwillingness  of  the 
Scottish  General  Synod  to  free  the  Irish 
Synod  from  its  jurisdiction.  The  union 
was  finally  accomplished  in  1818. 

Other  influences  were  at  work  upon  both 
of  the  Campbells  beside  the  hard  and  bitter 
sectarianism  of  the  times.  The  church  of 
Independents  at  Rich  Hill,  which  they  fre- 
quently attended,  held  to  doctrines  and 
practices  which  subsequently  became  char- 
acteristic of  the  churches  founded  by  them 
in  America.  Independency  in  Scotland 
originated  with  John  Glas,  a  minister  of  the 
established  church,  who  was  deposed  in 
1730  for  teaching  that  "there  is  no  warrant 
in  the  New  Testament  for  a  national  church; 
that  the  magistrate,  as  such,  has  no  place  in 
the  church,  and  has  no  right  to  punish  for 
heresy;  that  both  the  National  Covenant 
and  the  Solemn  League  and  Covenant  are 
without  scriptural  grounds;  and  that  the 


28       The  Disciples  of  Christ 


true  reformation  is  one  that  can  be  carried 
out,  not  by  political  and  secular  weapons 
but  by  the  word  and  spirit  of  Christ  only." 
He  gathered  around  him  a  group  of  people 
who  shared  his  views,  and  adopted  in  all 
his  teaching  the  principle  that  the  Scripture 
is  the  only  standard  of  both  doctrine  and 
practice.  He  accordingly  adopted  the  ob- 
servance of  the  Lord's  supper  every  Sunday, 
the  practice  of  feet  washing,  the  holy  kiss, 
mutual  exhortation  in  public  worship, 
plurality  of  elders,  community  of  goods, 
and  other  customs  which  he  derived  from 
the  primitive  church.  His  son-in-law, 
Robert  Sandeman,  took  up  his  views  and 
established  churches.  They  were  called 
Glassites  or  Sandemanians.  They  de- 
veloped into  a  narrow,  exclusive  sect,  and 
divided  into  no  less  than  three  parties,  each 
disavowing  all  fellowship  with  the  others. 

The  last  decade  of  the  eighteenth  century 
was  characterized  by  unusual  ferment  in  re- 
ligious circles  in  Scotland  and  Ireland.  The 


Conditions  in  Scotland  and  Ireland  29 

older  Presbyterian  bodies  threw  off,  by 
reason  of  the  tyrannical  power  of  the 
church  courts,  a  variety  of  persons  and 
groups  of  persons,  all  of  whom  took  the 
direction  of  independency.  In  1768  arose 
the  "Old  Scotch  Independents";  in  1769, 
the  "Old  Scotch  Baptists";  in  1780,  the 
"Bereans";  in  1798,  the  "Modern  Congre- 
gationalists  ";  and  between  1 790-1 800,  the 
evangelistic  activity  of  Rowland  Hill,  the 
Haldanes  and  their  associates,  gave  rise  to 
many  "Tabernacle  Churches"  throughout 
the  British  Isles,  notably  in  Scotland  and 
Ireland,  which  swelled  the  ranks  of  inde- 
pendency. Many  of  these  new  sects  on  ac- 
quaintance found  themselves  in  agreement 
with  each  other  and  came  together.  The 
features  which  they  shared  in  common 
were,  independency  in  church  government 
and  a  more  strict  adherence  to  the  Scrip- 
tures in  faith  and  practice.  This  appeal  to 
the  precedent  of  the  primitive  churches  in 
its  application  to  their  doctrines  and  prac- 


30       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

tices  occasioned  many  internal  contro- 
versies. The  question  of  baptism  inevitably 
came  up  for  discussion,  and  finally  de- 
termined the  arrangement  of  independent 
bodies  into  two  groups  :  those  who  ad- 
hered strictly  to  immersion,  and  those  who 
treated  the  form  of  baptism  as  a  matter  of 
indifference.  This  question  of  baptism  di- 
vided the  Haldanean  societies,  both  of  the 
Haldanes  adopting  Baptist  views.  "The 
new  notions  spread  over  most  of  the 
churches  of  the  connection,  and  contention, 
strife  of  words,  jealousies,  and  divisions 
followed,  of  which  none  but  such  as  passed 
through  the  painful  scenes  of  those  days 
can  have  any  adequate  idea."  "The  oc- 
currences in  question,  while  they  embar- 
rassed and  weakened  the  churches,  exposed 
them  also  to  the  triumph  and  sneers  of 
adversaries,  while  at  the  same  time  much 
odium  was  brought  on  every  attempt  to 
follow  out  scriptural  fellowship."  Through 
the  influence  of  Greville  Ewing,  one  of  the 


Conditions  in  Scotland  and  Ireland  31 

associates  of  the  Haldanes,  their  societies 
quite  generally  adopted  the  weekly  com- 
munion of  the  Lord's  supper. 

The  congregation  of  Independents  fre- 
quently attended  by  the  Campbells  at  Rich 
Hill  seems  to  have  been  of  the  Haldanean 
order,  for  the  Haldanes  were  occasionally 
heard  in  the  church.  It  was  in  this  church 
that  the  Campbells  heard  such  men  as  J.  A. 
Haldane,  Rowland  Hill,  Alexander  Carson, 
and  John  Walker,  concerning  the  latter  of 
whom  Alexander  Campbell  wrote  in  181 5: 
"I  am  now  an  Independent  in  church  gov- 
ernment; of  that  faith  and  view  of  the 
gospel  exhibited  in  John  Walker's  Seven 
Letters  to  Alexander  Knox,  and  a  Baptist  so 
far  as  regards  baptism." 

Such  were  the  religious  conditions  and 
influences  surrounding  the  Campbells  in 
Scotland  and  Ireland  during  the  closing 
years  of  the  eighteenth  century  and  the 
opening  years  of  the  nineteenth.  They 
were  both  negative  and  positive:  negative. 


32       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

in  disgusting  tliem  with  the  petty  differ- 
ences and  bitter  animosities  of  sectarianism; 
and  positive,  in  acquainting  them  with  and 
disposing  them  towards  the  teachings  of 
the  Independents.  This  is  shown  in  one 
matter — the  weekly  observance  of  the 
Lord's  supper.  "From  the  first  all  the 
Congregational  churches,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  a  few  in  Aberdeen  and  the  north, 
observed  the  Lord's  supper  every  first  day 
of  the  week,  as  a  part  of  the  usual  morn- 
ing service."  Thomas  Campbell  introduced 
the  weekly  observance  of  the  Lord's  supper 
into  the  first  church  he  established  in 
America. 


CHAPTER  III 

THE  CHRISTIAN  ASSOCIATION  OF  WASHINGTON 

The  health  of  Thomas  Campbell  began  to 
suffer  some  impairment  from  his  excessive 
labors  as  preacher  and  teacher,  and  his 
physician  recommended  a  sea  voyage  as  a 
remedy. 

Many  of  his  neighbors  had  gone,  and  more 
were  going,  to  America,  to  seek  homes. 
Some  of  his  Seceder  friends  had  emigrated 
to  the  New  World.  To  take  a  journey  to 
America,  whether  to  see  the  country  as  a 
visitor  or  remain  as  an  inhabitant,  would 
not  be  going  alone  or  entirely  among 
strangers.  He  bade  farewell  to  his  Seceder 
congregation  at  Ahorey,  and  took  letters 
of  dismissal  and  testimonials  from  the  church 
and  the  Presbytery  of  Market  Hill.  Leaving 
his  family  behind  and  the  academy  in  charge 
of  his  son  Alexander,  he  set  sail  April  8, 
33 


34       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

1807,  and  arrived  in  Philadelphia  thirty-five 
days  later,  where  he  found  the  Seceder  synod 
in  session.  He  presented  his  credentials, 
and  was  assigned  to  the  Presbytery  of 
Chartiers,  in  Western  Pennsylvania. 

The  Seceders  lost  none  of  their  peculiari- 
ties by  being  transplanted  to  the  New  World. 
They  brought  their  Old  World  "testimo- 
nies "  with  them  and  perpetuated  their  di- 
visions in  America  as  they  had  in  Scotland 
and  Ireland  against  the  better  feeling  and 
judgment  of  many  of  their  members.  The 
Anti-Burghers  were  the  first  to  establish 
churches  in  America,  and  when  the  Burghers 
arrived  on  the  ground  there  was  a  disposi- 
tion to  go  into  the  Anti-Burgher  fellowship. 
There  was  even  less  reason  for  the  division 
of  Seceders  into  Burghers  and  Anti-Burghers 
or  into  New  Lights  and  Old  Lights,  in 
America  than  in  Ireland,  for  the  divisions 
grew  out  of  political  conditions  which  were 
completely  changed  in  this  country.  Penn- 
sylvania became  the  stronghold  of  Seceder- 


The  Christian  Asscx:iation  35 

ism.  Tiie  Anti-Burgher  branch,  being  the 
stronger,  absorbed  the  Burgher  element  in 
the  stream  of  emigration  from  the  Old 
World,  and  put  itself  under  the  oversight  of 
the  Associate  (Anti-Burgher)  Synod  of  Scot- 
land. This  body  in  America  became  more 
exclusive  and  conservative  than  the  body 
in  Scotland,  and  in  1796  passed  "an  act 
against  occasional  communion,  which  ever 
afterward  remained  the  law  of  the 
church." 

Thomas  Campbell  had  not  been  long  at 
work  among  his  New  World  Seceder 
brethren  before  he  broke  over  the  narrow 
boundaries  of  his  denomination  and  violated 
one  of  its  most  cherished  usages.  It  had 
decreed  to  have  no  fellowship  with  brethren 
of  other  Presbyterian  parties,  much  less 
other  denominations.  But  when  Thomas 
Campbell  went  into  the  religiously  desolate 
parts  of  his  field,  he  invited  his  brethren  of 
all  Presbyterian  parties  who  were  without 
pastoral  care  and  the  sacraments  of  the 


36       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

church,  to  join  his  Anti-Burgher  members 
in  communion  service.  Whether  it  was  due 
more  to  the  zeal  of  his  ministerial  brethren 
for  the  correct  usages  of  Secederism  or 
to  their  jealousy  of  his  growing  power 
and  popularity,  that  they  assumed  a  hos- 
tile attitude  towards  Mr.  Campbell,  is  not 
clear;  but  it  was  not  long  before  sufficient 
offense  had  been  given  to  warrant  them  in 
openly  proceeding  against  him  before  the 
Presbytery.  He  was  charged  with  depar- 
ture from  the  standard  of  Seceder  faith  and 
with  violation  of  the  rules  and  usages  of  the 
church.  There  is  no  record  of  the  trial  be- 
fore the  Presbytery,  but  judging  from  the 
contents  of  a  letter  written  immediately 
after  to  the  Synod,  we  may  infer  that  he 
pleaded  for  larger  liberty  and  fraternity  than 
were  allowed  by  the  "testimony"  of  the 
church,  and  took  his  stand  upon  the  au- 
thority and  teachings  of  the  Scriptures  over 
against  the  authority  of  the  "testimony." 
The  Presbytery  voted  him  deserving  of  cen- 


The  Christian  Association  37 

sure.    He  protested  and  appealed  to  the 
Synod. 

Mr.  Campbell  was  desirous  of  continuing 
in  fellowship  with  the  Seceders  and  working 
harmoniously  with  them,  but  he  was  not 
willing  to  do  so  at  the  sacrifice  of  his  Chris- 
tian liberty  and  fraternity,  or  the  primacy 
of  the  Scriptures  as  the  law  of  his  Christian 
conscience,  and  the  rule  of  his  faith  and 
practice.  By  this  time  he  had  clearly  grasped 
the  principles  by  which  he  was  to  govern 
his  own  conduct  in  religious  matters,  and 
by  which  alone  he  believed  the  church  of 
God  could  be  brought  to  unity  and  purity. 
How  long  before  this  he  had  arrived  at  his 
position  cannot  be  said.  It  first  appeared  in 
the  letter  to  the  Synod.  The  letter  is  too 
long  to  quote  in  full,  but  it  is  so  important 
a  piece  of  evidence  in  the  development  of 
Thomas  Campbell's  religious  position,  that 
it  cannot  be  entirely  omitted.  He  said  :  / 
"Honored  Brethren  :  Before  you  come  to 
a  final  issue  in  the  present  business,  let  me 


38       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

entreat  you  to  pause  a  moment  and  seriously 
consider  the  following  things  :  To  refuse 
any  one  his  just  privilege,  is  it  not  to  op- 
press and  injure?  In  proportion  to  the 
magnitude  and  importance  of  the  privilege 
withheld,  is  not  the  injustice  in  withholding 
it  to  be  estimated  ?  If  so,  how  great  the 
injustice,  how  highly  aggravated  the  injury 
will  appear,  to  thrust  out  from  communion 
a  Christian  brother,  a  fellow-minister  for 
saying  and  doing  none  other  things  than 
those  which  our  Divine  Lord  and  his  Holy 
Apostles  have  taught  and  enjoined  to  be 
spoken  and  done  by  his  ministering  serv- 
ants, and  to  be  received  and  observed  by 
all  his  people!  Or  have  I,  in  any  instance, 
proposed  to  say  or  do  otherwise  ?  If  I 
have,  I  shall  be  heartily  thankful  to  any 
brother  that  shall  point  it  out,  and  upon  his 
so  doing,  shall  as  heartily  and  thankfully 
relinquish  it.  Let  none  think  that,  by  so 
saying,  I  entertain  the  vain  presumption  of 
being  infallible.    So  far  am  I  from  this, 


The  Christian  Association  39 

that  I  dare  not  venture  to  trust  my  own 
understanding  so  far  as  to  take  upon  me  to 
teach  anything  as  a  matter  of  faith  or  duty 
but  what  is  already  expressly  taught,  and 
enjoined  by  divine  authority."  It  is, 
therefore,  because  I  have  no  confidence, 
either  in  my  own  infallibility  or  in  that  of 
others,  that  I  absolutely  refuse,  as  inadmis- 
sible and  schismatic  the  introduction  of 
human  opinions  and  human  inventions  into 
the  faith  and  worship  of  the  church.  Is  it, 
therefore,  because  I  plead  the  cause  of  the 
scriptural  and  Apostolic  worship  of  the 
church,  in  opposition  to  the  various  errors 
and  schisms  which  have  so  awfully  cor- 
rupted and  divided  it,  that  the  brethren 
of  the  Union  should  feel  it  difficult  to  ad- 
mit me  as  their  fellow  laborer  in  that  blessed 
work  ?  I  sincerely  rejoice  with  them  in 
what  they  have  done  in  that  way;  but  still, 
all  is  not  yet  done;  and  surely  they  can 
have  no  just  objections  to  going  farther. 
Nor  do  I  presume  to  dictate  to  them  or  to 


40       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

others  as  to  how  they  should  proceed  for 
the  glorious  purpose  of  promoting  the  unity 
and  purity  of  the  church;  but  only  beg 
leave,  for  my  own  part,  to  walk  upon 
such  sure  and  peaceable  ground  that  I  maj 
have  nothing  to  do  with  human  controversy 
about  the  right  or  wrong  side  of  any  opinion 
whatsoever.  By  simply  acquiescing  in  what 
is  written,  as  quite  sufficient  for  every  pur- 
pose of  faith  and  duty  ;  and  thereby  to  in- 
fluence as  many  as  possible  to  depart  from 
human  controversy,  to  betake  themselves  to 
the  Scriptures,  and  in  so  doing,  to  the  study 
and  practice  of  faith,  holiness  and  love." 

This  extract  shows  sufficiently  the  sin- 
cerity of  the  purpose  and  spirit  of  Campbell 
in  his  conflict  with  his  brethren.  It  also 
contains  echoes  and  reminiscences  of  the  sec- 
tarian conflicts  surrounding  him  in  Ireland, 
and  reflects  the  teachings  of  such  men  as 
John  Glas,  the  Haldanes,  John  Walker  and 
Archibald  McLean.  There  is  nothing  new 
in  his  appeal  to  the  authority  of  Scripture, 


The  Christian  Association  41 

except  the  emphasis  upon  it  and  use  made  of 
it.  Reforming  spirits  in  all  ages  of  the 
church  have  made  their  appeal  back  to 
Scripture,  from  Vigilantius  and  Jovinian  in 
the  early  church  through  Arnold  of  Brescia, 
William  of  Occam,  John  Wiclif  and  John 
Huss,  to  Martin  Luther  and  John  Calvin  in 
the  modern  church.  The  authority  of  primi- 
tive Christianity  appeared  in  the  church 
first  as  a  principle  of  purity;  Luther  ap- 
plied it  as  a  principle  of  liberty,  as  well  as 
purity;  Campbell  conceived  of  it  as  a  prin- 
ciple of  unity,  as  well  as  liberty  and  purity. 
He  believed  that  a  return  to  primitive  Chris- 
tianity would  make  a  united,  as  well  as  a 
pure  and  a  free  church.  The  crying  need  of 
the  Protestant  church  was  unity;  but  the 
p^th  to  that  unity  lay  through  her  deliver- 
ance from  a  new  bondage  into  which  she 
had  fallen,  a  bondage  to  creeds  and  theo- 
logical formularies  of  the  faith  as  conditions 
of  union  and  communion  among  Christians. 
Here  appears  for  the  first  time  in  the  history 


42        The  Disciples  of  Christ 

of  the  church  the  annunciation  of  the  au- 
I  thority  of  Scripture  as  a  principle  of  Chris- 
1  tian  unity.  Here  lay  the  remedy  for  the 
church's  divisions  and  strifes  in  his  time 
and  all  time.  He  announces  it  with  all  con- 
fidence and  sincerity,  as  a  principle  which 
his  own  brethren  who  were  trying  him  for 
heresy  already  accepted,  and  upon  which  the 
entire  Protestant  church  was  built.  He  was 
conscious  only  of  recalling  an  old  faith.  It 
is  self-evident,  axiomatic,  consentient  with 
the  mind  of  all  Protestant  Christendom. 
>  With  him  the  appeal  to  Scripture  was 
the  end  of  controversy  between  him  and 
his  Seceder  brethren.  It  was  equivalent 
to  an  argumentum  ad  hominem,  and  against 
the  more  open  and  flagrant  departures  from 
plain  Scripture  precept  and  example  would 
be  successful. 

The  result  of  the  appeal  to  the  Synod  was 
to  set  aside  the  judgment  of  the  Presbytery 
on  the  ground  of  the  informalities  of  its 
procedure,  and  to  release  the  protester  from 


The  Christian  Association  43 

the  censure  inflicted  by  tiie  Presbytery;  but 
it  decided  that  there  were  sufficient  grounds 
in  his  evasive  and  unsatisfactory  answers 
to  the  charges  to  "infer  censure."  He  sub- 
mitted to  the  decision  *'as  an  act  of  defer- 
ence to  the  judgment  of  the  court,"  and 
that  "he  might  not  give  offense  to  his 
brethren  by  manifesting  a  refractory  spirit." 
He  supposed  this  would  settle  the  matter, 
and  he  would  be  enabled  to  go  on  in  peace 
with  his  ministerial  labors;  but  he  was  dis- 
appointed, for  his  enemies  were  all  the 
more  bitter  in  their  hostility  to  him.  Rather 
than  try  to  continue  his  work  in  the  at- 
mosphere of  suspicion  and  criticism,  he 
deemed  it  his  duty  to  sever  his  relations 
with  the  Seceders.  He  presented  to  the 
Synod  a  formial  renunciation  of  its  authority, 
and  committed  himself  to  the  sympathy  of 
the  religious  world. 

Many  persons  not  only  among  the  Se- 
ceders but  members  of  other  religious  bodies 
who  had  heard  him  sympathized  with  him 


44       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

and  shared  his  views.  He  began  to  hold 
meetings  whenever  there  were  opportu- 
nities, in  barns,  groves,  schoolhouses,  and 
the  houses  of  his  Irish  friends  who  had 
settled  in  Washington  County,  and  soon  a 
clearly  defined  group  of  persons  acknowl- 
edged his  leadership.  They  agreed  to  meet 
at  the  home  of  Abraham  Altars,  to  consum- 
mate plans  for  the  future,  and  agree  upon  a 
basis  of  cooperation.  In  an  address  on 
this  occasion  he  gave  utterance  to  a  sentence 
which  was  destined  to  become  a  kind  of 
watchword  among  those  who  came  under 
»  his  leadership:  "Where  the  Scriptures 
speak,  we  speak;  where  they  are  silent,  we 
are  silent."  He  had  scarcely  finished  speak- 
ing when  one  person  present  made  the  ap- 
plication of  the  principle  to  infant  baptism, 
and  concluded  that  the  Scriptures  nowhere 
speak  of  it.  They,  therefore,  ought  not  to 
have  anything  to  do  with  it.  Mr.  Campbell 
was  not  so  easily  convinced  of  this,  and 
thought  it  ought  to  be  treated  as  a  matter 


The  Christian  Association  45 

of  forbearance.  At  a  meeting  held  August 
17,  1809,  a  committee  of  twenty-one  was 
appointed,  headed  by  Thomas  Campbell, 
to  draw  up  a  program  of  action.  They 
agreed  to  call  themselves  "The  Christian  • 
Association  of  Washington."  The  results 
of  the  deliberation  of  this  committee  were 
the  writing  by  Mr.  Campbell  and  the  adop- 
tion by  the  Association  of  what  was  called 
a  Declaration  and  Address.  It  is  the  most  * 
important  document  in  the  entire  history  of 
the  Disciples.  It  was  forged  out  of  the  ex- 
periences and  charged  with  the  spirit  of 
Thomas  Campbell.  It  is  free  from  bitterness 
or  vindictiveness,  but  is  passionate  with  the 
eloquence  of  one  who  had  felt  all  the  misery 
and  meanness  of  sectarianism.  Love  and 
sorrow  have  conquered  pride  and  revenge 
in  his  soul,  and  he  pleads  as  a  brother  with 
his  brethren. 

The  Christian  Association  thought  of  , 
itself,  not  as  a  church  or  as  a  new  religious 
denomination,  but  as  a  society  for  the  pro- 


46       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

motion  of  Christian  union  among  all  the 
denominations.  Its  members  still  held  mem- 
bership in  the  various  churches  of  the  region. 
They  had  no  thought  of  being  otherwise 
received  by  the  various  denominations  than 
as  kindly  helpers  in  restoring  their  faith  and 
order  to  the  New  Testament  model.  We 
cannot  understand  how  they  so  mistook 
the  disposition  of  the  various  denomina- 
tions towards  change  and  reconstruction  as 
to  suppose  they  would  cordially  or  even 
quietly  permit  alterations  in  their  faith  and 
usages,  except  that  the  members  of  the 
Association  had  an  unusually  profound,  if 
not  naive,  confidence  in  the  magic  of  their 
principles.  The  Declaration  sets  forth  the 
motives  and  purposes  of  the  Association  as 
follows:  "Moreover,  being  well  aware, 
from  sad  experience,  of  the  heinous  nature 
and  pernicious  tendency  of  religious  contro- 
versy among  Christians,  tired  and  sick  of 
the  bitter  jarrings  and  janglings  of  a  party 
spirit,  we  would  desire  to  be  at  rest;  and, 


The  Christian  Association  47 

were  it  possible,  we  would  also  desire  to 
adopt  and  recommend  such  measures  as 
would  give  rest  to  our  brethren  throughout 
all  the  churches:  as  would  restore  unity, 
peace  and  purity  to  the  whole  church  of 
God."  "Our  desire,  therefore,  for  our- 
selves and  our  brethren  would  be  that 
rejecting  human  opinions  and  the  inven- 
tions of  men,  as  of  any  authority,  or  as 
having  any  place  in  the  church  of  God,  we 
might  forever  cease  from  further  conten- 
tions about  such  things;  returning  to  and 
holding  fast  by  the  original  standard;  tak- 
ing the  divine  word  alone  for  our  guide; 
the  Holy  Spirit  for  our  teacher  and  guide, 
to  lead  us  into  all  truth;  and  Christ  alone, 
as  exhibited  in  the  word,  for  our  salvation: 
that  by  so  doing  we  may  be  at  peace  among 
ourselves,  follow  peace  with  all  men,  and 
holiness,  without  which  no  man  shall  see 
the  Lord."  Then  follows  a  statement  of 
the  purpose  and  program  of  the  Associa- 
tion:   To  form  a  religious  association  for 


48       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

promoting  simple  and  evangelical  Chris- 
tianity, under  the  name  of  the  Christian 
Association  of  Washington;  to  contribute  a 
certain  sum  to  support  a  pure  gospel  min- 
istry and  supply  the  poor  with  the  Scrip- 
tures; to  encourage  the  formation  of  simi- 
lar associations;  to  consider  itself  not  a 
church,  but  as  a  church  reformation  society; 
to  countenance  only  such  ministers  as  adhere 
closely  to  the  example  and  precept  of 
Scripture  in  conduct  and  teaching;  to  entrust 
the  management  of  the  Association  to  a 
standing  committee  of  twenty-one;  to  hold 
two  meetings  a  year;  to  open  each  meeting 
with  a  sermon;  and  to  look  to  the  friends 
of  genuine  Christianity  for  the  support  of 
their  work. 

This  is  followed  by  the  Address  with  the 
following  dedicatory  heading:  "To  all 
that  love  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  in  sincerity, 
throughout  all  the  churches,  the  following 
Address  is  most  respectfully  submitted." 
After  an  arraignment  of  the  evils  of  division 


The  Christian  Association  49 

in  Christendom  and  an  indictment  of 
sectarianism,  he  goes  on  to  plead  with  his 
"dearly  beloved  brethren,"  of  "all  the 
churches  of  Christ,"  "to  unite  in  the  bonds 
of  an  entire  Christian  unity — Christ  alone  » 
being  the  hmd,  the  centre,  his  word  the 
rule;  and  explicit  belief  of,  and  manifest 
conformity  to  it  in  all  things — the  terms.'' 

There  were  certain  "fundamental  truths" 
of  the  nature  of  "first  principles" — "truths 
demonstrably  evident  in  the  light  of  Scrip- 
ture and  right  reason  "  which  underlay  the 
proposal  for  a  union  of  Protestant  Chris- 
tians. These  self-evident  presuppositions 
he  puts  in  the  form  of  propositions  as  fol- 
lows : 

"I.  That  the  Church  of  Christ  upon 
earth  is  essentially,  intentionally,  and  con- 
stitutionally one;  consisting  of  all  those  in 
every  place  that  profess  their  faith  in  Christ 
and  obedience  to  him  in  all  things  according 
to  the  Scriptures,  and  that  manifest  the 
same  by  their  tempers  and  conduct,  and  of 


50       The  Disciples  of  Christ 


none  else;  as  none  else  can  be  truly  and 
properly  called  Christians. 

"2.  That  although  the  Church  of  Christ 
upon  earth  must  necessarily  exist  in  particu- 
lar and  distinct  societies,  locally  separate 
one  from  another,  yet  there  ought  to  be  no 
schisms,  no  uncharitable  divisions  among 
them.  They  ought  to  receive  each  other  as 
Christ  Jesus  hath  also  received  them,  to  the 
glory  of  God.  And  for  this  purpose  they 
ought  all  to  walk  by  the  same  rule,  to  mind 
and  speak  the  same  thing;  and  to  be  per- 
fectly joined  together  in  the  same  mind, 
and  in  the  same  judgment. 

"3.  That  in  order  to  do  this,  nothing 
ought  to  be  inculcated  upon  Christians  as 
articles  of  faith;  nor  required  of  them  as 
terms  of  communion,  but  what  is  expressly 
taught  and  enjoined  upon  them  in  the  word 
of  God.  Nor  ought  anything  to  be  ad- 
mitted, as  of  Divine  obligation,  in  their 
Church  constitution  and  management,  but 
what  is  expressly  enjoined  by  the  authority 


The  Christian  Association  51 

of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  and  his  apostles 
upon  the  New  Testament  Church,  either  in 
express  terms  or  by  approved  precedent. 

"4.  That  although  the  Scriptures  of  the 
Old  and  New  Testaments  are  inseparably 
connected,  making  together  but  one  perfect 
and  entire  revelation  of  the  Divine  will,  for 
the  edification  and  salvation  of  the  Church, 
and  therefore  in  that  respect  cannot  be 
separated;  yet  as  to  what  directly  and 
properly  belongs  to  their  immediate  object, 
the  New  Testament  is  as  perfect  a  constitu- 
tion for  the  worship,  discipline,  and  govern- 
ment of  the  New  Testament  Church,  and 
as  perfect  a  rule  for  the  particular  duties  of 
its  members,  as  the  Old  Testament  was  for 
the  worship,  discipline,  and  government  of 
the  Old  Testament  Church,  and  the  particu- 
lar duties  of  its  members. 

"  5.  That  with  respect  to  the  commands 
and  ordinances  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
where  the  Scriptures  are  silent  as  to  the  ex- 
press time  or  manner  of  performance,  if  any 


52       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

such  there  be,  no  human  authority  has 
power  to  interfere,  in  order  to  supply  the 
supposed  deficiency  by  making  laws  for  the 
Church;  nor  can  anything  more  be  required 
of  Christians  in  such  cases,  but  only  that 
they  so  observe  these  commands  and  ordi- 
nances as  will  evidently  answer  the  declared 
and  obvious  end  of  their  institution.  Much 
less  has  any  human  authority  power  to  im- 
pose new  commands  or  ordinances  upon 
the  Church,  which  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ 
has  not  enjoined.  Nothing  ought  to  be  re- 
ceived into  the  faith  or  worship  of  the 
Church,  or  be  made  a  term  of  communion 
among  Christians,  that  is  not  as  old  as  the 
New  Testament. 

"6.  That  although  inferences  and  de- 
ductions from  Scripture  premises,  when 
fairly  inferred,  may  be  truly  called  the 
doctrine  of  God's  holy  word,  yet  are  they 
not  formally  binding  upon  the  consciences 
of  Christians  farther  than  they  perceive  the 
connection,  and  evidently  see  that  they  are 


The  Christian  Association  53 

so;  for  their  faith  must  not  stand  in  the 
wisdom  of  men,  but  in  the  power  and 
veracity  of  God.  Therefore,  no  such  de- 
ductions can  be  made  terms  of  communion, 
but  do  properly  belong  to  the  after  and  pro- 
gressive edification  of  the  Church.  Hence, 
it  is  evident  that  no  such  deductions  or  in- 
ferential truths  ought  to  have  any  place  in 
the  Church's  confession. 

"7.  That  although  doctrinal  exhibitions 
of  the  great  system  of  Divine  truths,  and 
defensive  testimonies  in  opposition  to  pre- 
vailing errors,  be  highly  expedient,  and  the 
more  full  and  explicit  for  those  purposes 
they  be,  the  better;  yet,  as  these  must  be  in 
a  great  measure  the  effect  of  human  reason- 
ing, and  of  course  must  contain  many  in- 
ferential truths,  they  ought  not  to  be  made 
terms  of  communion;  unless  we  suppose, 
what  is  contrary  to  fact,  that  none  have  a 
right  to  the  communion  of  the  Church,  but 
such  as  possess  a  very  clear  and  decisive 
judgment,  or  are  come  to  a  very  high  de- 


54       The  Disciples  of  Christ 


gree  of  doctrinal  information;  whereas  the 
Church  from  the  beginning  did,  and  ever 
will,  consist  of  little  children  and  young 
men,  as  well  as  fathers. 

"8.  That  as  it  is  not  necessary  that  per- 
sons should  have  a  particular  knowledge  or 
distinct  apprehension  of  all  Divinely  re- 
vealed truths  in  order  to  entitle  them  to  a 
place  in  the  Church;  neither  should  they, 
for  this  purpose,  be  required  to  make  a 
profession  more  extensive  than  their  knowl- 
edge; but  that,  on  the  contrary,  their  hav- 
ing a  due  measure  of  Scriptural  self-knowl- 
edge respecting  their  lost  and  perishing 
condition  by  nature  and  practice,  and  of 
the  way  of  salvation  through  Jesus  Christ, 
accompanied  with  a  profession  of  their 
faith  in  and  obedience  to  him,  in  all  things, 
according  to  his  word,  is  all  that  is  abso- 
lutely necessary  to  qualify  them  for  admis- 
sion into  his  church. 

*'9.  That  all  are  enabled  through  grace 
to  make  such  a  profession,  and  to  manifest 


The  Christian  Association  55 

the  reality  of  it  in  their  tempers  and  con- 
duct, should  consider  each  other  as  the 
precious  saints  of  God,  should  love  each 
other  as  brethren,  children  of  the  same  fam- 
ily and  father,  temples  of  the  same  Spirit, 
members  of  the  same  body,  subjects  of  the 
same  grace,  objects  of  the  same  love, 
bought  with  the  same  price,  and  joint-heirs 
of  the  same  inheritance.  Whom  God  hath 
thus  joined  together  no  man  should  dare  to 
put  asunder. 

10.  That  division  among  the  Christians 
is  a  horrid  evil,  fraught  with  many  evils. 
It  is  antichristian,  as  it  destroys  the  visible 
unity  of  the  body  of  Christ;  as  if  he  were 
divided  against  himself,  excluding  and  ex- 
communicating a  part  of  himself.  It  is 
antiscriptural,  as  being  strictly  prohibited 
by  his  sovereign  authority;  a  direct  violation 
of  his  express  command.  It  is  antinatural, 
as  it  excites  Christians  to  contemn,  to  hate, 
and  oppose  one  another,  who  are  bound  by 
the  highest  and  most  endearing  obligations 


56       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

to  love  each  other  as  hrethren,  even  as 
Christ  has  loved  them.  In  a  word,  it  is 
productive  of  confusion  and  of  very  evil 
work. 

"  II.  That  (in  some  instances)  a  partial 
neglect  of  the  expressly  revealed  will  of 
God,  and  (in  others)  an  assumed  authority 
for  making  the  approbation  of  human  opin- 
ions and  human  inventions  a  term  of  com- 
munion, by  introducing  them  into  the  con- 
stitution, faith,  or  worship  of  the  Church, 
are,  and  have  been,  the  immediate,  obvious, 
and  universally  acknowledged  causes,  of  all 
the  corruptions  and  divisions  that  ever  have 
taken  place  in  the  Church  of  God. 

"12.  That  all  that  is  necessary  to  the 
highest  state  of  perfection  and  purity  of  the 
Church  upon  earth  is,  first,  that  none  be 
received  as  members  but  such  as  having 
that  due  measure  of  self-knowledge  des- 
cribed above,  do  profess  their  faith  in 
Christ  and  obedience  to  him  in  all  things 
according  to  the  Scriptures;  nor,  secondly, 


The  Christian  Association  57 

that  any  be  retained  in  her  communion 
longer  than  they  continue  to  manifest  the 
reality  of  their  profession  by  their  temper 
and  conduct.  Thirdly,  that  her  ministers, 
duly  and  Scripturally  qualified,  inculcate 
none  other  things  than  those  very  articles 
of  faith  and  holiness  expressly  revealed  and 
enjoined  in  the  word  of  God.  Lastly,  that 
in  all  their  administrations  tney  keep  close 
by  the  observance  of  all  Divine  ordinances, 
after  the  example  of  the  primitive  Church, 
exhibited  in  the  New  Testament;  without 
any  additions  whatsoever  of  human  opin- 
ions or  inventions  of  men. 

"13.  Lastly.  That  if  any  circumstan- 
tials indispensably  necessary  to  the  ob- 
servance of  Divine  ordinances  be  not  found 
upon  the  page  of  express  revelation,  such, 
and  such  only,  as  are  absolutely  necessary 
for  this  purpose  should  be  adopted  under 
the  title  of  human  expedients,  without  any 
pretense  to  a  more  sacred  origin,  so  that 
any  subsequent  alteration  or  difference  in 


58       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

the  observance  of  these  things  might  pro- 
duce no  contention  nor  division  in  the 
Church." 

The  starting  point  in  his  plan  of  Christian 
union  was  the  sufficiency  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment as  a  rule  of  faith  and  practice  for  the 
Christian  church.  Acknowledging  this,  as 
all  Protestants  were  supposed  to  do,  the 
next  step  was  to  distinguish  in  the  teach- 
ing of  the  New  Testament  between  matters 
of  faith  and  matters  of  opinion.  The 
former  belonged  to  the  essential  condi- 
tions of  Christian  union  and  communion, 
were  few,  easily  understood  by  all,  whether 
learned  or  unlearned,  and  were  not  subject 
to  interpretation;  the  latter  belonged  to  the 
realm  of  non-essentials,  were  many,  were 
subject  to  interpretation  and  speculation, 
and  should  not  be  made  terms  of  union  and 
communion  among  Christians.  The  Scrip- 
tures were  to  be  the  guide  in  distinguish- 
ing matters  of  faith  from  matters  of 
opinion;  what  they  made  a  matter  of  faith, 


The  Christian  Association  59 

and  required  for  salvation,  should  be  essen- 
tial to  communion;  what  they  left  as  mat- 
ter of  opinion,  could  be  safely  left  to  the 
exercise  of  liberty.  The  realm  of  liberty 
was  to  be  made  larger — as  large  as  the  realm 
of  opinions.  Christians  were  not  to  be  per- 
secuted or  denied  fellowship  on  account  of 
their  opinions.  They  were  to  be  bound  • 
only  where  the  Scriptures  bound  them. 
There  never  could  be  unity  in  opinions,  for 
they  were  many;  there  can  be  unity  only  in 
faith,  for  it  is  one.  The  Scriptures  leave  no 
doubt  as  to  what  is  of  faith.  He  felt 
that  this  was  a  sure  path  to  agreement  in 
faith  and  practice  among  Christians,  that  it 
would  put  an  end  to  theological  strifes  and 
divisions,  and  that  all  agreeing,  would  finally 
unite  in  one  organic  body.  In  the  Declara- 
tion and  Address,  he  does  not  go  beyond 
this  formal  program  of  action.  At  this  time 
he  has  not  settled,  is  indeed  uncertain  of  the 
practical  determination  of,  what  things  are 
matters  of  faith  and  what  of  opinion,  and 


6o       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

does  not  settle  the  final  form  of  the  united 
church.  It  is  yet  an  untried  principle,  but 
of  its  efficacy  and  ultimate  success  he 
has  no  doubt.  The  task  of  definition,  ap- 
plication, and  experiment  lay  before  him, 
and  was  to  raise  many  questions  he  had  not 
thought  of.  Not  until  the  organization  of 
the  first  church,  when  they  were  called 
upon  to  fix  the  terms  of  Christian  fellow- 
ship for  those  seeking  entrance,  did  they  be- 
gin to  define  what  they  understood  as  prim- 
itive Christianity  and  to  distinguish  between 
matters  of  faith  and  matters  of  opinion. 
Nothing  but  matters  of  faith,  things  essen- 
tial to  salvation,  were  to  be  made  tests  of 
fellowship. 

Here  emerge  two  principles  which  Camp- 
bell designed  should  be  cooperative  and 
mutually  corrective,  the  authority  of  primi- 
tive Christianity,  and  the  obligation  of 
Christian  unity.  The  one  was  means,  the 
other  end,  while  both  were  equally  bind- 
ing.   He  did  not  anticipate  that  there  would 


The  Christian  Association  61 

be  conditions  where  the  principles  would  be 
mutually  exclusive,  and  that  a  difference  of 
emphasis  would  make  them  mutually  de- 
structive. Here  lie  the  seeds  of  disagree- 
ment and  controversy  within  the  movement 
itself. 

Alexander  Campbell,  the  son,  arrived  in 
America  just  as  the  Declaration  and  Ad- 
dress was  coming  from  the  press.  There 
had  been  no  communication  as  to  what  was 
transpiring  in  the  religious  convictions  of 
each,  but  when  they  met  and  discussed  the 
events  and  changes  that  had  taken  place  in 
the  two  years  of  separation,  they  found 
that  they  had  come  to  practically  the  same 
position.  The  father  in  America,  the  son  in 
Scotland,  each  unknown  to  the  other,  h^id 
broken  with  Secederism.  The  son  fell  in 
heartily  with  the  action  of  his  father  and  the 
principles  of  the  Declaration  and  Address. 
He  had  spent  one  of  the  two  years  of  sepa- 
ration in  study  at  the  University  of  Glas- 
gow, where  his  father  had  formerly  studied, 


62       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

and  while  there  came  more  intimately  under 
the  influence  of  the  new  ideas  and  move- 
ments of  the  country.  Here  he  met  Gre- 
ville  Ewing,  the  Haldanes,  and  other  religious 
leaders  of  the  time  who  were  pressing  for 
larger  liberty  of  Christian  service  under  the 
rule  of  a  stricter  conformity  to  the  Scriptures. 
The  son  had  not  been  long  in  the  Christian 
Association  of  Washington  before  his  gifts 
of  leadership  were  recognized  and  acknowl- 
edged, and  he  was  called  upon  to  make 
public  defense  of  the  Declaration  and  Ad- 
dress against  the  criticisms  and  objections 
of  the  various  religious  parties  of  the  com- 
munity. He  had  dedicated  himself  to  the 
ministry  at  the  time  of  the  shipwreck  of  the 
family  when  they  first  attempted  to  cross 
the  Atlantic  to  join  the  father  in  the  fall  of 
1808,  and  were  forced  to  postpone  the  voy- 
age until  the  next  season.  In  the  meantime 
the  family,  for  the  benefit  of  the  son  had 
decided  to  spend  the  winter  at  the  Uni- 
versity of  Glasgow.    This  resolution  on 


The  Christian  Association  63 

shipboard  to  give  himself  to  the  ministry 
came  providentially  to  make  him  the  de- 
fender and  promoter  of  the  new  reforma- 
tion. He  quickly  stepped  before  his  father 
as  the  destined  leader  of  the  movement. 
From  the  moment  of  his  first  effort  at  pub- 
lic discourse  he  showed  those  marked  pow- 
ers of  eloquence  and  argumentation  which 
lifted  him  subsequently  to  the  front  rank  of 
pulpit  orators. 


CHAPTER  IV 

BARTON  \V.  STONE  AND  THE  SPRINGFIELD  PRES- 
BYTERY 

The  main  stream  in  the  historic  develop- 
ment of  the  Disciples  of  Christ  took  its  rise 
in  the  Christian  Association  of  Washington, 
led  by  Thomas  Campbell  and  his  son  Alex- 
ander. As  a  consequence  the  influence  of 
the  Campbells  has  been  dominant  through- 
out their  history.  Later  in  its  course  the 
main  stream  was  joined  by  another  current, 
of  independent  origin  and  decided  influ- 
ence, which  arose  in  "The  Springfield 
Presbytery,"  led  by  Barton  W.  Stone. 

Stone  was  born  in  the  state  of  Maryland, 
December  24,  1772.  His  father  died  when 
he  was  still  young  and  soon  after  his 
mother  removed  with  a  large  family  of 
children  and  servants  to  Pittsylvania 
County,  Virginia.  It  was  during  the  Revo- 
64 


The  Springfield  Presbytery  65 

lutionary  War  when  the  entire  country  was 
aflame  with  hatred  of  the  English.  The 
political  events  and  conditions  of  the  time 
made  a  lasting  impression  upon  the  mind 
of  the  boy.  He  was  particularly  impressed 
by  the  novel  religious  conditions  which  sur-  ♦ 
rounded  him  in  Virginia.  The  coming  of 
Baptist  preachers  into  the  neighborhood  of  * 
his  home  after  the  close  of  the  wan  with 
their  peculiar  manner  of  preaching  and 
form  of  baptism,  excited  his  interest  and 
attention.  The  experiences  narrated  by  the  * 
converts  of  their  conviction  of  sin  in  dreams 
and  visions,  especially  interested  him.  On 
the  heels  of  the  Baptists  appeared  Meth-  • 
odist  preachers,  of  a  prepossessing  appear- 
ance— grave,  holy,  meek,  plain  and  humble, 
who  were  bitterly  opposed  by  the  Episco- 
palians and  Baptists.  These  religious  ex- 
citements took  hold  of  young  Stone  and 
created  in  him  an  earnest  desire  for  religion, 
but  not  knowing  how  to  get  it,  he  turned 
his  thoughts  in  other  directions. 


66       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

His  first  plan  with  reference  to  a  career 
in  the  world  was  to  become  a  barrister. 
With  this  in  mind,  he  took  the  patrimony 
which  had  recently  fallen  to  him,  and  went 
to  an  academy  in  North  Carolina  in  1790. 
He  entered  the  academy  in  the  midst  of  a 
great  religious  excitement  under  the  leader- 
#  ship  of  James  McGready  in  which  thirty  or 
more  of  the  students  were  converted  and 
began  to  hold  prayer  meetings  every  morn- 
ing before  recitations.  The  devout  atmos- 
phere of  the  school  troubled  him  with 
thoughts  of  his  own  lost  condition.  He 
tried  to  find  peace  in  associating  with  the 
worldly  students,  and  joined  them  in 
making  jests  at  religion.  To  get  away 
from  the  annoyance  of  religious  associa- 
tions he  even  planned  to  go  to  another 
school.  Under  a  sermon  preached  by 
McGready  he  was  so  profoundly  moved 
that,  "had  he  been  standing,  he  would 
probably  have  sunk  to  the  floor  under  the 
impression."    Under  the  awful  alarm  of 


The  Springfield  Presbytery  67 


being  forever  damned  if  he  was  not  con- 
verted, he  resolved  "to  seek  religion  at  the 
sacrifice  of  every  earthly  good."  He  says: 
"According  to  the  preaching  and  the  ex- 
perience of  the  pious  in  those  days,  I  antic- 
ipated a  long  and  painful  struggle  before  I 
should  be  prepared  to  come  to  Christ,  or, 
in  the  language  then  used,  before  1  should 
get  religion.  This  anticipation  was  com- 
pletely realized  by  me.  For  one  year  I  was 
tossed  on  the  waves  of  uncertainty — labor- 
ing, praying  and  striving  to  obtain  saving 
faith — sometimes  desponding,  and  almost 
despairing  of  ever  getting  it."  The  doc- 
trines then  publicly  taught  were,  that 
"  mankind  were  so  totally  depraved,  that 
they  could  not  believe,  repent,  nor  obey 
the  gospel — that  regeneration  was  an  im- 
mediate work  of  the  Spirit,  whereby  faith 
and  repentance  were  wrought  in  the  heart." 
Under  continued  preaching  and  the  deep- 
ening of  his  despair  and  sense  of  helpless- 
ness, he  sank  into  a  state  of  apathy,  in 


68       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

which  he  remained  for  many  weeks.  He 
was  again  awakened  by  a  sermon  on  "  God 
is  love."  He  says:  The  discourse  being 
ended,  I  immediately  retired  to  the  woods 
alone  with  my  Bible.  Here  1  read  and 
prayed  with  various  feelings  between  hope 
and  fear.  But  the  truth  I  had  just  learned, 
'God  is  love,'  prevailed."  "I  yielded  and 
sunk  at  his  feet  a  willing  subject." 

At  the  end  of  his  course  of  study  he  de- 
sired to  give  himself  to  the  ministry  of  the 
gospel,  but  "had  no  assurance  of  being  di- 
vinely called  and  sent."  He  disclosed  his 
state  of  mind  to  a  Dr.  Caldwell  of  the  Pres- 
byterian Church,  who  removed  his  difficulty 
by  telling  him  that  he  had  no  right  to  expect 
a  miracle  to  convince  him  of  a  call.  He  be- 
came a  candidate  for  the  ministry,  and  was 
assigned  certain  studies  and  reading  in 
preparation  for  examination.  His  reading 
on  the  doctrine  of  the  trinity  seemed  only 
to  confuse  him.  He  resolved  to  give  up 
his  study  and  go  into  other  business,  but 


The  Springfield  Presbytery  69 


was  relieved  of  his  difficulties  on  the  trinity 
by  reading  Watts.  He  was  examined  be- 
fore the  Presbytery  of  Orange  County, 
North  Carolina,  and  was  accepted;  but  be- 
fore being  licensed,  took  a  trip  to  Georgia 
and  engaged  in  school  teaching.  Returning 
to  North  Carolina  in  1796  he  was  licensed  to 
preach,  and  was  assigned  a  preaching  cir- 
cuit in  the  lower  part  of  the  state.  He  was 
still  troubled  with  doubts  of  his  fitness  for 
the  ministry.  To  get  out  of  the  reach  of  all 
friends  and  acquaintances,  he  resolved  to  go 
to  the  Cumberland  country,  with  the  stream 
of  emigration  setting  in  that  direction.  He 
was  prevailed  upon  to  preach  everywhere 
along  the  way  through  Tennessee;  and  by 
the  time  he  reached  Kentucky,  he  was  quite 
restored  to  his  desire  to  preach.  He  was 
induced  to  settle  as  permanent  pastor  of  the 
Presbyterian  churches  of  Cane  Ridge  and 
Concord. 

When  the  time  for  his  ordination  at 
the  hands  of  the  Transylvania  Presbytery,  as 


yo       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

pastor  of  these  congregations,  came  in  1798, 
it  found  his  mind  in  a  state  of  doubt  and 
perplexity  over  the  doctrines  of  the  trinity, 
election,  and  reprobation,  as  taught  in  the 
Confession  of  Faith.  When  the  Presbytery 
met  he  went  to  two  of  the  leaders  and  told 
them  of  his  difficulties.  He  says:  "They 
asked  me  how  far  I  was  willing  to  receive 
the  confession  ?  I  told  them,  as  far  as  I 
saw  it  consistent  with  the  Word  of  God. 
They  concluded  that  was  sufficient."  "  No 
objection  being  made,  I  was  ordained." 

The  thing  which  disturbed  his  faith  more 
than  anything  else  was  the  doctrine  of  pre- 
destination and  election  taught  in  the  Con- 
fession which  he  was  supposed  to  accept. 
He  says:  "Often  when  I  was  addressing 
the  listening  muhitudes  on  the  doctrine  of 
total  depravity,  their  inability  to  believe — 
and  of  the  necessity  of  the  physical  power 
of  God  to  produce  faith;  and  then  persuad- 
ing the  helpless  to  repent  and  believe  the 
gospel,  my  zeal  in  a  moment  would  be 


The  Springfield  Presbytery  71 


chilled  at  the  contradiction.  How  can  they 
believe  ?  How  can  they  repent  ?  How  can 
they  do  impossibilities  ?  How  can  they  be 
guilty  in  not  doing  them  ?  "  Under  an  ex- 
perience of  ardent  love  and  tenderness  for 
all  mankind,  as  he  was  praying  and  reading 
his  Bible  one  evening,  he  said  to  a  person 
present  that  if  he  had  power  he  would  save 
them  all.  It  came  to  him  with  startling 
power  that  if  God  loved  all  men,  as  he  was 
taught  to  believe,  why  then,  did  not  God 
save  them  ?  He  has  the  power  to  save,  and 
if  he  does  not,  is  not  that  a  contradiction  of 
his  love  ?  He  became  "  convinced  that  God 
did  love  the  whole  world,  but  that  the  rea- 
son why  he  did  not  save  all,  was  because  of 
their  unbelief :  and  that  the  reason  why  they 
believed  not,  was  not  because  God  did  not 
exert  his  physical,  almighty  power  in  them 
to  make  them  believe,  but  because  they  neg- 
lected and  received  not  his  testimony  given 
in  the  word  concerning  his  son." 
In  the  spring  of  1801  occurred  the  strange 


72       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

religious  excitement  in  the  south  of  Ken- 
tucky and  in  Tennessee,  under  the  preach- 
ing of  James  McGready,  who  had  created 
the  awakening  in  the  academy  where  Stone 
went  as  a  student.  Stone  went  down  to 
witness  the  marvellous  effects  of  the  meet- 
ings and  the  "exercises"  which  seized  the 
converts.  He  went  in  a  skeptical  and  crit- 
ical frame  of  mind,  but  returned  to  his  con- 
gregations fully  convinced  of  the  genuine- 
ness of  the  conversions.  His  people  came 
together  to  hear  his  account  of  the  excite- 
ment. His  own  spirit  seems  to  have  caught 
the  power  of  McGready,  and  the  same 
scenes  and  exercises  were  reproduced  under 
his  own  preaching.  At  a  meeting  which  he 
opened  in  August,  1801,  at  Cane  Ridge, 
there  were  as  many  as  twenty  or  thirty 
thousand  people,  of  all  denominations, 
gathered  together.  Many  persons  came 
from  Ohio  and  more  distant  parts  to  attend 
the  meeting. 
Stone  was  not  the  only  preacher  in  the 


The  Springfield  Presbytery  73 

Presbyterian  church  of  the  region  who  de- 
murred to  the  Calvinistic  doctrines  of  the 
Confession.  There  were  four  others,  Rich- 
ard McNemar,  John  Thompson,  John  Dun- 
lavy,  and  Robert  Marshall.  Stone  says: 
*'  The  distinguishing  doctrine  preached  by 
us  was,  that  God  loved  the  world — the 
whole  world,  and  sent  his  Son  to  save  them, 
on  condition  that  they  believed  in  him — 
that  the  gospel  was  the  means  of  salvation 
— but  that  this  means  would  never  be  ef- 
fectual to  this  end,  until  believed  and  obeyed 
by  us — that  God  requires  us  to  believe  in 
his  Son,  and  had  given  us  sufficient  evi- 
dence in  his  word  to  produce  faith  in  us,  if 
attended  to  by  us — that  sinners  were  capa- 
ble of  understanding  and  believing  this 
testimony,  and  of  acting  upon  it  by  coming 
to  the  Saviour,  and  obeying  him,  and  from 
him  obtaining  salvation  and  the  Holy  Spirit." 
These  preachers  were  known  and  singled 
out  by  their  orthodox  brethren  for  warning 
and  reproof.    The  first  one  to  be  proceeded 


74       The  Disciples  of  Christ 


against  by  the  Springfield  Presbytery  of 
Ohio,  for  departure  from  the  Confession 
was  McNemar.  His  case  was  appealed  to 
the  Synod  of  Lexington,  Kentucky.  When 
it  appeared  in  the  course  of  the  investigation 
that  the  decision  would  go  against  him,  the 
five  preachers  held  a  conference  and  resolved 
to  protest  against  the  action  of  the  Synod 
and  withdraw  from  its  jurisdiction,  though 
not  from  the  Presbyterian  fellowship.  Fail- 
ing in  an  attempt  to  reclaim  them,  the  Synod 
passed  a  decree  of  suspension,  and  pub- 
lished it  in  their  respective  churches.  The 
five  preachers,  joined  by  several  others, 
constituted  themselves  into  a  presbytery 
which  they  called  "The  Springfield  Pres- 
bytery." Within  a  year  they  dissolved  the 
Presbytery  under  the  conviction  that  they 
were  forming  a  new  sect  and  thus  adding 
to  the  divisions  of  the  one  Body  of  Christ; 
that  there  was  no  authority  in  the  Scriptures 
for  the  name  they  bore,  or  the  creed  they 
confessed,  or  the  Presbyterian  organization 


The  Springfield  Presbytery  75 

they  adopted.  In  a  semi-humorous  vein 
they  wrote  what  they  called  The  Last  Will 
and  Testament  of  the  Springfield  Presbytery, 
in  which  they  willed  that  the  body  sink 
into  union  with  the  Body  of  Christ  at  large; 
that  their  name  of  distinction  be  forgotten 
and  that  the  name  Christian  be  adopted; 
that  each  congregation  govern  itself  by  the 
precepts  and  rules  of  the  New  Testament, 
without  delegating  any  authority  to  higher 
bodies;  that  ministers  take  the  Scriptures 
for  their  study  in  preparation  for  the  min- 
istry, and  obtain  license  from  God  to  preach 
the  gospel;  that  each  church  choose  its 
own  pastor;  and  that  the  people  take  the 
Bible  as  their  only  rule  of  faith  and  practice. 
The  document  was  signed  by  six  preachers 
who  had  led  in  the  revolt  against  Calvinism 
and  the  authority  of  the  Synod,  and  was 
dated  June  28,  1804. 

The  ideas  and  motives  at  work  in  the 
Springfield  Presbytery  were  strikingly  like 
those  at  work  in  the  Christian  Association 


76       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

of  Washington.  They  were  both  guided 
by  the  desire  for  the  unity  of  the  people  of 
God;  both  saw  the  way  to  that  unity  in  the 
rejection  of  human  creeds  and  authority, 
and  in  the  adoption  of  the  New  Testament 
as  the  only  rule  of  faith  and  practice;  both 
originated  in  Presbyterianism  and  were  pre- 
cipitated in  their  course  by  the  oppressive 
»  authority  exercised  by  a  presbytery  and 
synod  over  the  faith  of  a  minister;  but  both 
acted  independently  and  in  ignorance  of 
each  other  in  the  beginning— the  Springfield 
Presbytery  in  Kentucky  in  1804,  the  Chris- 
tian Association  in  Pennsylvania  in  1809. 
The  development  of  the  two  bodies  imme- 
diately after  their  inception  took  the  same  di- 
rection— towards  the  Baptist  position.  The 
first  one  of  the  ministers  to  adopt  immer- 
sion, and  this  before  leaving  the  Presby- 
terian church,  was  Robert  Marshall.  Stone 
heard  of  it  and  wrote  trying  to  dissuade 
him  from  it.  Marshall's  reply  in  defense  of 
immersion  was  so  convincing  that  Stone 


The  Springfield  Presbytery  77 

was  shaken  in  his  mind  concerning  infant 
sprinkling.  He  called  a  meeting  of  his 
congregations  for  the  discussion  of  the 
subject,  with  the  result  that  both  preacher 
and  people  submitted  to  the  rite  of  immer- 
sion. 

The  influence  of  the  teaching  of  Stone 
extended  widely  through  Kentucky  and 
Ohio.  Through  the  defection  of  Richard 
McNemar  and  John  Dunlavy  to  the  Shakers, 
and  the  return  of  John  Thompson  and  Rob- 
ert Marshall  to  the  fellowship  of  the  Presby- 
terian church,  Stone  was  the  only  one  of  the 
original  five  preachers  left.  He  went  on 
preaching,  making  converts,  and  organizing 
churches  as  an  itinerant  until  he  was  called  as 
settled  pastor  of  a  church  he  founded  in 
Georgetown.  On  a  journey  which  he  made 
into  Ohio  to  baptize  a  Presbyterian  preacher 
who  had  adopted  his  views,  he  went  into  the 
meetings  of  a  Baptist  association.  He  says: 
"I  exerted  myself  with  meekness  against 
sectarianism,  formularies,  and  creeds,  and 


/S       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

labored  to  establish  the  scriptural  union  of 
Christians,  and  their  scriptural  name."  "The 
result  was  that  they  agreed  to  cast  away 
their  formularies  and  creeds,  and  take  the 
Bible  alone  for  their  rule  of  faith  and  prac- 
tice, and  to  bury  their  association,  and  to 
become  one  with  us  in  the  great  work  of 
Christian  union."  This  union  included 
about  twelve  Baptist  preachers.  He  traveled 
extensively  through  Ohio  preaching  and 
baptizing  people,  his  meetings  attended  by 
great  crowds,  and  frequently  marked  by 
strange  physical  exercises  and  commotions 
on  the  part  of  converts. 

Alexander  Campbell  and  Barton  W.  Stone 
had  heard  of  each  other  during  several  years, 
but  they  did  not  meet  until  1824.  They 
found  themselves  in  mutual  agreement  on 
the  fundamental  principles  of  their  work. 
Their  disciples  spread  over  the  same  regions 
of  country,  and  established  churches  side  by 
side.  Two  bodies  of  people  so  closely  re- 
lated in  ideas  and  principles  could  not  per- 


The  Springfield  Presbytery  79 

manently  remain  apart.  The  story  of  their 
union,  which  took  place  in  Kentucky  in 
1832,  will  be  told  in  a  subsequent  chap- 
ter. 


/ 


CHAPTER  V 


THE  UNION  WITH  THE  BAPTISTS 

The  friendly  overtures  of  the  Christian 
Association  to  the  various  denominations  to 
confer  with  them  on  a  plan  for  the  union  of 
religious  parties  was  not  cordially  received. 
The  plan  of  union  which  was  so  captivating 
to  the  mind  of  Thomas  Campbell  and  seemed 
to  many  others  who  joined  with  him  a  pan- 
acea for  many  religious  ills,  was  bitterly  op- 
posed by  all  Christian  bodies.  They  pre- 
sumed too  much  upon  the  openness  of  the 
denominational  mind  to  new  teachings,  and 
too  little  upon  the  devotion  of  religious 
parties  to  their  customs  and  traditions. 
The  denominations  were  not  ready  then 
for  a  union  which  contemplated  any 
change  in  their  usages  or  loss  of  their 
identity,  and  a  hundred  years  of  growth 
since  then  has  not  sufficed  to  dispose 
So 


The  Union  With  the  Baptists  81 

them  any  more  kindly  towards  the  de- 
struction of  their  systems  as  a  condition 
of  union.  The  instinct  of  self-preservation 
is  about  as  strong  in  religious  bodies  as  in 
living  creatures.  As  a  program  of  union  it 
seemed  to  be  born  out  of  due  time.  No 
body  was  fond  of  it  or  saw  anything  in  it 
to  admire,  but  its  progenitors. 

The  members  of  the  Christian  Associa- 
tion fell  at  once  under  the  odium  and 
ostracism  of  a  new  sect.  It  was  the  one 
thing  they  desired  to  prevent  and  regarded 
with  the  bitterest  regret.  That  a  society 
set  for  the  termination  of  sectarianism 
should  itself  become  another  sect  in  the 
eyes  of  the  world,  was  a  position  they 
could  not  tolerate.  Their  aim  and  char- 
acter as  a  Christian  union  society  must 
be  maintained.  Nothing  would  satisfy 
their  expectations  but  a  reduction  of 
the  number  of  religious  parties,  while 
they  were  in  danger  of  increasing  the 
number  by  one.    To  permit  themselves 


82       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

unwittingly  to  assume  a  denominational 
form  of  existence  would  be  a  travesty  upon 
their  principles.  The  unity  of  the  people 
of  God  had  become  the  highest  obligation 
in  their  ideal  of  Christian  duty.  They 
made  haste  to  get  under  cover  of  some 
existing  denominational  roof,  rather  than 
suffer  the  charge  of  building  another. 

In  this  state  of  mind  proposals  came  to 
the  Association  asking  them  to  unite  with 
the  Presbyterian  church.  They  had  come 
out  of  one  kind  of  Presbyterianism  and 
still  shared  the  fundamental  beliefs  of  the 
Presbyterians.  They  were  urged  in  private 
by  members  of  the  Presbyterian  church  to 
cast  in  their  lot  with  them  and  were  led  to 
believe  that  they  would  be  a  welcome  ac- 
cession to  the  ranks  of  that  church.  Thomas 
Campbell,  against  the  advice  of  Alexander, 
made  application  to  the  Synod  of  Pittsburg, 
October  4,  1810,  "to  be  taken  into  Chris- 
tian and  ministerial  communion."  He  went 
before  the  Synod  and  made  a  full  statement 


The  Union  With  the  Baptists  83 

of  the  plans  and  purposes  of  the  Christian 
Association  and  of  his  own  views  on  re- 
ligious subjects.  After  questioning  him 
carefully,  and  deliberating  on  the  advisa- 
bility of  receiving  him,  the  Synod  decided 
that  his  views  and  the  purposes  of  the 
Association  were  so  baleful  in  their  tend- 
ency and  so  destructive  of  the  interests  of 
religion,  that  they  could  not  receive  him 
into  their  fellowship.  He  made  the  ap- 
plication as  a  representative  of  the  Associa- 
tion, so  that  his  reception  to  fellowship 
would  have  included  the  entire  Association. 
They  did  not  propose  to  abandon  the  As- 
sociation with  its  plans  and  purposes,  but 
to  bring  it  over  and  carry  on  their  work  of 
reformation  under  shelter  of  the  Presby- 
terian church. 

This  rebuff  received  at  the  hands  of  the 
Presbyterian  Synod  was  a  serious  blov/  to 
the  hope  and  zeal  of  the  Association  in  the 
cause  of  Christian  union.  They  discovered 
that  Christian  union  was  not  so  simple  a 


84       The  Disciples  of  Christ 


matter  as  to  be  accomplished  by  offering 
to  submit  to  the  Scriptures  alone.  It  com- 
pletely changed  the  course  of  the  Associa- 
tion. From  being  a  society  for  the  promo- 
tion of  union  and  reformation  among  the 
churches,  they  saw  that  they  would  be  ob- 
liged to  form  themselves  into  a  church  or 
be  deprived  of  the  benefits  and  offices  of 
church  fellowship.  The  hostile  attitude  of 
the  Presbyterian  Synod,  their  criticisms 
upon  the  position  and  principles  of  the 
Association,  taught  them  to  look  no  further 
for  sympathy  among  the  denominations. 
A  public  controversy  arose  between  the 
Presbyterians  and  the  members  of  the  As- 
sociation, in  which  Alexander  Campbell 
took  the  leading  part. 

Both  of  the  Campbells  continued  to  preach 
regularly  at  various  places  in  and  around 
Washington,  to  members  of  the  Associa- 
tion and  their  friends  who  began  to  take 
interest  in  the  new  religious  teachings. 
Criticised  by  other  parties,  they  felt  called 


The  Union  With  the  Baptists  85 


upon  to  reply,  and  the  replies  were  not  con- 
ducive to  harmony  or  mutual  understand- 
ing between  them.  The  leaders  of  the  As- 
sociation now  took  an  aggressive  attitude 
of  criticism  and  arraignment  of  the  secta- 
rianism and  errors  of  the  denominations,  and 
challenged  them  to  test  their  forms  and 
terms  of  communion  by  the  express  pre- 
cepts and  examples  of  the  New  Testament. 
A  war  upon  the  unscriptural  faiths  and 
practices  of  the  churches  from  the  stand- 
point of  a  severe  conformity  to  the  teach- 
ings of  Scripture,  began,  which  grew  in  ex- 
tent and  influence  until  it  separated  them 
completely  as  a  new  party  from  all  other 
parties. 

The  time  had  now  come  for  the  Associa- 
tion to  constitute  itself  into  a  church  for 
"  the  enjoyment  of  those  privileges  and  the 
performance  of  those  duties  which  belong 
to  the  church  relation."  A  church  was  or- 
ganized out  of  the  members  of  the  Associa- 
tion, May  4,  181 1,  at  Brush  Run,  Pa.  Thomas 


86        The  Disciples  of  Christ 

Campbell  was  appointed  elder  and  Alexan- 
der Campbell  was  licensed  to  preach  the 
gospel.  Four  deacons  were  chosen,  con- 
sisting of  John  Dawson,  George  Sharpe, 
William  Gilchrist,  and  John  Foster;  "and 
amidst  the  prayers  and  solemn  services  of  the 
day,  they  united  in  singing  Psalm  ii8,  from 
the  thirteenth  to  the  twenty-ninth  verses,  in 
the  old  metrical  version,  which  as  Seceders, 
they  had  been  in  the  habit  of  using."  The 
following  day  being  Sunday,  they  celebrated 
their  first  communion  service  and  both  Alex- 
anderCampbell  and  his  fatherpreached.  The 
Lord's  supper  from  the  first  was  celebrated 
every  first  day  of  the  week,  as  had  been 
done  in  the  Independent  churches  in  Scot- 
land. One  or  two  persons  were  observed 
not  to  partake  of  the  supper,  and  when 
asked,  said  they  had  never  been  immersed 
and  did  not  consider  themselves  authorized 
to  partake  without  a  proper  form  of  bap- 
tism. 

The  question  of  baptism  now  came  up 


The  Union  With  the  Baptists  87 


for  discussion  in  the  new  church.  It  is  not 
the  first  time  the  question  has  been  raised 
among  them  for  it  was  pointed  out  to  them 
by  James  Foster,  and  to  Alexander  Camp- 
bell by  a  Presbyterian  minister,  that  upon 
the  principles  of  the  Declaration  and  Ad- 
dress,  there  was  no  place  for  infant  baptism 
in  their  practice.  Joseph  Bryant,  one  of 
those  who  refused  to  commune,  insisted  on 
being  immersed,  which  was  done  by  Thomas 
Campbell  in  a  creek  near  Brush  Run,  July 
4,  1811. 

Alexander  Campbell  was  engaged  in 
making  preaching  tours,  with  ever  widen- 
ing circuits,  into  the  neighboring  parts  of 
Pennsylvania,  Ohio,  and  West  Virginia. 
He  was  developing  a  body  of  Christian 
doctrines  and  practices  under  the  principle, 
"Where  the  Scriptures  speak,  we  speak; 
where  they  are  silent,  we  are  silent."  He 
was  ordained  to  the  office  of  the  ministry 
January  i,  181 2,  by  the  elders  and  deacons 
of  the  Brush  Run  church.    He  was  married 


88       The  Disciples  of  Christ 


to  the  daughter  of  a  Mr.  John  Brown,  a 
Presbyterian,  by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Hughes,  a 
Presbyterian  minister,  March  13, 181 1.  Their 
first  child  was  born  March  13,  1812.  The 
duty  of  the  parents  towards  the  child  with 
respect  to  baptism,  which  was  recognized 
by  every  Presbyterian,  must  have  been 
raised  in  the  home  of  Alexander  Campbell. 
Whether  this  precipitated  the  inquiry  or 
not,  it  is  certain  that  immediately  after  the 
birth  of  the  child,  he  instituted  a  careful 
inquiry  into  the  scripturalness  of  both  in- 
fant baptism  and  sprinkling,  which  up  to 
this  time  had  been  treated  as  matters  of 
forbearance.  He  came  to  the  conclusion 
that  the  immersion  of  a  believer  was  the 
only  proper  scriptural  mode  of  baptism,  and 
that  consequently,  he  himself  had  never 
been  properly  baptized.  He  applied  to  a 
Baptist  preacher  by  the  name  of  Matthias 
Luce  to  perform  the  rite  of  baptism  for  him- 
self and  wife;  and  when  his  father  learned 
of  his  determination  he  also  concluded  to  be 


The  Union  With  the  Baptists  89 


immersed,  and  with  him  his  wife  and 
daughter,  and  James  Hanen  and  wife.  At 
the  place  of  baptism  the  greater  part  of  the 
Brush  Run  church  had  assembled  and 
Thomas  Campbell  delivered  a  discourse 
upon  the  principles  of  the  new  reformation. 
In  arranging  with  Mr.  Luce  to  perform  the 
rite,  Alexander  had  stipulated  that  no  other 
condition  should  be  required  of  them  than 
a  simple  confession  of  their  faith  that  Jesus 
is  the  Son  of  God. 

From  the  time  that  the  group  of  friends 
and  sympathizers  of  Thomas  Campbell 
adopted  the  principle,  "Where  the  Scrip- 
tures speak,  we  speak;  and  where  they  are 
silent,  we  are  silent,"  the  direction  of  the 
movement  seemed  to  be  towards  the  Inde- 
pendent and  the  Baptist  position.  This 
fact  is  singularly  like  the  tendency  of  the 
new  parties  that  arose  in  Scotland  in  the 
last  years  of  the  eighteenth  century;  they 
gravitated  towards  the  position  of  the  Inde- 
pendents and  the  Baptists.    Within  a  week 


90       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

of  the  immersion  of  the  Campbells  and 
their  group,  thirteen  other  members  of  the 
Brush  Run  church  asked  to  be  immersed, 
and  it  was  done  by  Thomas  Campbell,  upon 
a  simple  confession  of  their  faith  in  Jesus  as 
the  Christ,  the  Son  of  God.  It  was  not 
long  before  the  entire  church  of  thirty  or 
more  members  were  immersed,  for  those 
who  did  not  accept  immersion  withdrew 
from  the  church.  The  organization  of  the 
first  church  thus  forced  upon  them  a  settle- 
ment of  the  terms  of  Christian  fellowship. 
Immersion  became  a  condition  of  union  and 
communion  with  the  Brush  Run  church. 
Its  conversion  into  a  society  of  immersed 
believers  did  not  bring  them  any  favor 
from  the  Pedobaptist  churches  of  the 
region,  but  it  did  bring  them  into  recogni- 
tion and  sympathy  with  the  Baptist 
churches. 

The  Brush  Run  church  had  come  to  their 
position  under  the  guidance  of  primitive 
Christian  example  and  its  application  to 


The  Union  With  the  Baptists  9I 

every  item  of  religious  faith  and  practice 
which  they  adopted  in  their  order.  They 
were  not  seeking  agreement  with  any  body 
of  Christians.  They  were  "a  party  of 
progress,"  bound,  they  knew  not  where, 
but  ready  to  go  where  their  principles  led 
them;  whether  into  agreement  with  Meth- 
odists, Baptists,  or  Quakers  of  modern 
parties,  they  could  not  tell,  but  they  felt 
into  agreement  with  a  very  ancient  party 
of  believers,  "first  called  Christians  at 
Antioch."  They  were  seeking  "the  old 
paths,"  agreement  with  the  "  original  stand- 
ard," "that  they  might  come  fairly  and 
firmly  to  original  ground  upon  clear  and 
certain  premises,  and  take  up  things  just  as 
the  Apostles  left  them."  They  were  feeling 
their  way  and  making  sure  of  their  ground 
as  they  went.  They  knew  of  no  religious 
party  that  stood  upon  original  ground; 
none  that  dared  return  to  the  original  stand- 
ard. The  sense  of  freedom  which  they 
enjoyed  in  being  bound  only  by  the  New 


92        The  Disciples  of  Christ 

Testament  with  respect  to  all  doctrines  and 
usages,  was  equalled  only  by  the  sense  of 
certainty  they  enjoyed  in  being  infallibly 
guided  by  the  New  Testament  to  the  true 
conditions  of  Christian  union  and  com- 
munion. So  keen  was  their  sense  of  de- 
liverance from  the  narrowness  of  sectarian 
testimonies  and  the  tyranny  of  sectarian 
courts,  that  they  would  never  again  permit 
themselves  to  be  bound  by  any  party  or 
creed.  They  now  breathed  the  free  air  of 
liberty.  They  felt  the  call  of  destiny  to  the 
religious  world. 

When  the  Baptists  of  the  region  heard  of 
the  action  of  the  Brush  Run  church  in  sub- 
mitting to  immersion  and  adopting  it  in 
their  practice,  they  were  highly  elated  and 
began  to  urge  the  church  to  join  the  Baptist 
association  of  churches.  Alexander  Camp- 
bell had  not  been  favorably  impressed  with 
the  Baptists,  either  as  ministers  or  people, 
and  had  no  idea  of  uniting  with  them.  He, 
however,  liked  the  people  better,  and  the 


The  Union  With  the  Baptists  93 


ministers  less,  the  more  he  got  acquainted 
with  them.  He  did  not  press  himself  upon 
their  attention,  but  they  knew  his  power  as 
a  speaker  and  often  sent  for  him  to  preach 
for  them.  He  visited  their  association  at 
Uniontown,  Pennsylvania,  in  the  autumn 
of  18 1 2,  and  being  less  pleased  than  ever 
with  the  Baptists,  resolved  never  to  go 
again.  The  question  of  a  union  with  the 
Baptists  was  laid  before  the  Brush  Run 
church  in  the  fall  of  1813.  "  We  discussed 
the  propriety  of  the  measure/'  says  Alex- 
ander Campbell.  "After  much  discussion 
and  earnest  desire  to  be  directed  by  the 
wisdom  which  cometh  from  above,  we 
finally  concluded  to  make  an  overture  to 
that  effect,  and  to  write  out  a  full  view  of 
our  sentiments,  wishes  and  determinations 
on  the  subject.  We  did  so  in  some  eight 
or  ten  pages  of  large  dimensions,  exhibiting 
our  remonstrance  against  all  human  creeds 
as  bonds  of  communion  or  union  among 
Christian  churches,  and  expressing  a  will- 


94       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

ingness,  upon  certain  conditions,  to  cooper- 
ate or  to  unite  with  that  association,  pro- 
vided always  that  we  should  be  allowed  to 
teach  and  preach  whatever  we  learned  from 
the  Holy  Scriptures,  regardless  of  any 
human  creed  or  formula  in  Christendom." 

The  significant  thing  to  observe  in  the 
terms  of  this  union  is  the  attitude  of  the 
Campbells  towards  their  own  liberty  of 
teaching  under  the  guidance  of  the  Scrip- 
tures. They  had  really  begun  to  shift  the 
emphasis  from  the  obligation  of  Christian 
union  to  the  authority  of  primitive  Chris- 
tianity. This  was  due  to  a  certain  loss  of 
confidence  in  the  practicability  of  Christian 
union  under  existing  religious  conditions, 
but  more  to  the  growing  influence  and  lead- 
ership of  Alexander  Campbell,  who  never 
was  so  much  of  a  Christian  unionist  as  his 
father.  Leadership  was  then  passing  from 
father  to  son,  and  emphasis  from  the  princi- 
ple of  unity  to  the  principle  of  apostolicity. 
They  were  not  now  ready  for  union  at  the 


The  Union  With  the  Baptists  95 

cost  of  their  liberty  or  any  conviction. 
Truth  as  they  were  led  to  see  it  in  the  light  of 
the  Scriptures  was  better  than  any  union. 
Yet  union  was  still  desirable,  though  not  im- 
mediately practicable,  and  sectarianism  and 
division  were  still  sinful.  They  had  come, 
however,  to  justify  their  separation  as  a  dis- 
tinct party  and  were  reconciled  to  it,  if  it 
must  be.  Under  these  circumstances  and 
upon  these  conditions  they  were  received 
into  the  Redstone  Association  of  Baptist 
churches.  But  not  without  objection  on 
the  part  of  a  few  Baptist  preachers  who 
were  either  jealous  or  suspicious  of  Mr. 
Campbell. 

The  Campbells  were  conscious  that  they 
were  not  in  full  agreement  with  the  Baptists 
at  the  time  of  the  union,  and  gave  them 
full  warning  as  to  the  policy  and  principles 
of  the  Brush  Run  church.  Not  even  on  the 
subject  of  baptism,  which  was  the  most  ap- 
parent point  of  resemblance,  was  there  en- 
tire agreement.    Alexander  Campbell  had 


96       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

developed  a  doctrine  of  the  design  of  bap- 
tism by  1812  which  was  opposed  to  the 
Baptist  doctrine.  He  had  already  declared 
baptism  to  be  "the  first  formal  and  compre- 
hensive act  of  the  obedience  of  faith."  A 
very  sacred  custom  in  Baptist  usage  was  the 
requirement  of  an  examination  and  the  rela- 
tion of  an  experience  previous  to  baptism; 
but  Campbell  declined  to  accept  any  other 
requirement  as  a  condition  of  baptism  at  the 
hands  of  Mr.  Luce  than  a  simple  confession 
of  faith  in  Christ,  as  he  thought  was  done 
in  apostolic  times. 

The  Brush  Run  church  differed  from 
Baptist  churches  in  its  practice  with  respect 
to  the  Lord's  supper.  It  had  become  an 
essential  part  of  the  worship  of  the  Brush 
Run  church  every  first  day  of  the  week, 
while  among  Baptist  churches  it  was  cele- 
brated once  a  quarter.  So  essential  to  the 
Lord's  day  worship  seemed  the  Supper  that 
Thomas  Campbell  declared  as  early  as  1812 
that  "instituted  worship  can  be  nowhere 


The  Union  With  the  Baptists  97 

performed  upon  the  Lord's  day,  where  the 
Lord's  supper  is  not  administered.  Wher- 
ever this  is  neglected,  there  New  Testament 
worship  ceases."  The  Brush  Run  church 
inchned  at  first  to  adopt  the  custom  of  close 
communion,  and  admit  only  immersed  be- 
lievers, but  did  not  settle  into  the  practice. 

The  Campbells  held  another  doctrine 
which  was  soon  to  become  the  cause  of  the 
first  and  of  a  continuous  controversy  be- 
tween them  and  the  Baptists.  They  taught 
that  there  was  a  difference  in  the  authority 
of  the  Old  and  New  Testaments  for  the 
Christian.  Thomas  Campbell  had  drawn 
the  distinction  in  1809  in  the  Declaration 
and  Address  by  declaring  that  "the  New 
Testament  is  as  perfect  a  constitution  for 
the  worship,  discipline  and  government  of 
the  New  Testament  church,"  "as  the  Old 
Testament  was  for  the  worship,  discipline 
and  government  of  the  Old  Testament 
church";  and  again  in  1812:  "  How  many 
disciples  of  Moses  are  to  be  found  in  the 


gS       The  Disciples  of  Christ 

professed  school  of  Jesus  Christ!  and  how 
few  among  the  teachers  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment seem  to  know  that  Christ's  ministers 
are  not  able  ministers  of  the  Old  Testament 
but  of  the  New."  To  a  Baptist  of  that  time 
every  part  of  the  Scriptures  was  equally 
authoritative. 

Their  view  of  the  meaning  and  value  of 
ordination  differed.  While  Alexander 
Campbell  submitted  to  the  ceremony,  it  was 
not  regarded  as  indispensable  to  the  minis- 
terial character  and  office.  It  was  pointed 
out  that  many  in  the  New  Testament  were 
said  to  have  preached  and  baptized,  yet 
there  is  no  record  of  their  ordination.  The 
Baptists  insisted  on  it  as  essential  to  the  ex- 
ercise of  the  ministerial  function. 

The  most  serious  departure  of  the  Camp- 
bells from  a  Baptist  point  of  view  was  in 
their  conception  of  faith.  They  held  to  the 
orthodox,  Calvinistic  conception  of  faith,  as 
"of  the  operation  of  God  and  effect  of  al- 
mighty power  and  regenerating  grace,"  as 


The  Union  With  the  Baptists  99 

late  as  1812;  but  in  the  same  year  their  con- 
ception underwent  a  change  and  they  de- 
clared that  "  the  word  of  God  is  a  means  of 
regeneration  "  and  that  faith  is  "  the  full  and 
firm  persuasion,  or  hearty  belief  of  the 
divine  testimony  concerning  Jesus." 

It  is  not  probable  that  all  these  views  held 
by  the  Campbells  at  the  time  of  the  union 
were  known  to  the  Baptists  of  the  Redstone 
Association.  They  were  glad  to  have  their 
forces  strengthened  and  their  ranks  filled 
by  the  accession  of  the  Campbells  and  the 
Brush  Run  church,  and  were  not  disposed 
to  lay  down  rigid  conditions  of  fellowship. 
Accepted  as  a  member  of  the  Redstone 
Association,  the  Brush  Run  church  was 
entitled  to  send  messengers  to  the  annual 
meetings  and  have  a  voice  in  all  of  its 
affairs. 


CHAPTER  VI 


ALEXANDER  CAMPBELL  AS  A  BAPTIST 

The  union  of  the  Campbells  with  the 
Baptists  conditioned  the  course  of  their 
movement  for  the  next  twenty  years.  It 
opened  a  sphere  of  influence  and  activity 
to  Alexander  Campbell,  now  the  acknowl- 
edged leader,  which  made  possible  the 
wider  and  more  rapid  dissemination  of 
his  views.  It  drew  the  attention  and 
opened  the  ears  of  the  entire  Baptist 
brotherhood,  then  the  numerically  strongest 
denomination  in  America,  to  the  new  teach- 
ings. Without  this  affiliation  with  the 
Baptists  all  church  doors  would  have  been 
closed  to  him,  and  the  progress  of  "the 
reformation  "  would  have  been  in  the  teeth 
of  the  bitterest  opposition  and  sectarian 
hatred.  At  one  stroke  he  secured  a  great 
audience  of  friendly  listeners. 

100 


Alexander  Campbell  as  a  Baptist  loi 

To  all  intents  and  purposes  Campbell  be- 
came a  Baptist  and  deliberately  and  frankly 
accepted  the  denominational  status  which 
it  gave  him.  The  Brush  Run  church  was 
lost  in  the  larger  fellowship  of  Baptist 
churches,  and  assumed  with  all  others  its 
part  in  the  extension  of  Baptist  views  and 
influence.  Campbell's  first  active  interest 
in  the  Baptist  cause  was  to  offer  his  services 
for  the  purpose  of  raising  money  among 
the  Baptist  churches  of  the  East  to  build  a 
meeting  house  at  Charlestown,  Virginia. 
It  was  to  provide  a  church  home  for  his 
father-in-law's  family,  who  had  taken 
membership  in  the  Brush  Run  church 
and  was  contemplating  removal  to  Charles- 
town,  where  he  had  already  established 
himself  in  business.  He  visited  such  cities 
as  Philadelphia,  New  York,  and  Washing- 
ton, preaching  and  raising  money  in  Bap- 
tist churches,  and  returned  with  a  thousand 
dollars  with  which  a  church  was  built. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Redstone  Associa- 


102      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

tion,  August  30,  1816,  Alexander  Campbell 
was  present  as  one  of  the  three  messengers 
from  the  Brush  Run  church,  in  spite  of 
opposition  on  the  part  of  a  few  preachers, 
the  demand  of  the  people  to  hear  him  was 
so  strong  that  they  were  obliged  to  give 
him  a  place  on  the  program.  He  preached 
a  sermon  which  afterwards  became  famous 
as  the  Sermon  on  the  Law,  and  was  the 
beginning  of  open  opposition  to  him  in  the 
Redstone  Association,  and  the  cause  of 
frequent  charges  of  heresy  against  him 
in  other  Baptist  associations.  The  subject 
of  the  discourse  was  the  view  adopted  by 
him  in  1812  that  the  law  of  Moses  is  not  . 
binding  upon  the  Christian  church,  and 
that  the  preaching  of  the  gospel  is  the  all- 
sulficient  means  of  conversion.  The  prin- 
ciple that  the  Old  Testament  with  its  au- 
thority, laws,  and  ordinances  had  been  ab- 
rogated in  Christ,  was  not  with  him  a  mere 
theological  speculation,  but  of  practical 
utility,    it  was  this  practical,  far-reaching 


Alexander  Campbell  as  a  Baptist  103 

scope  of  the  doctrine,  as  intimated  in  a 
closing  section  of  the  sermon,  which 
alarmed  the  Baptists.  He  said:  "  A  fourth 
conclusion  which  is  deducible  from  the 
above  premises  is,  that  all  arguments  or 
motives  drawn  from  the  law,  or  Old  Testa- 
ment, to  urge  the  disciples  of  Christ  to  bap- 
tize their  infants;  to  pay  tithes  to  their 
teachers;  to  observe  holy  days  or  religious 
fasts,  as  preparatory  to  the  observance  of 
the  Lord's  supper;  to  sanctify  the  seventh 
day;  to  enter  into  national  covenants;  to 
establish  any  form  of  religion  by  civil  law— 
and  all  reasons  or  motives  borrowed  from 
the  Jewish  law,  to  excite  the  disciples  of 
Christ  to  a  compliance  with  or  imitation  of 
Jewish  customs,  are  inconclusive,  repugnant 
to  Christianity,  and  fall  ineffectual  to  the 
ground;  not  being  enjoined  or  counte- 
nanced by  Jesus  Christ." 

This  was  novel  doctrine,  not  only  to  the 
audience  before  him,  but  to  most  Christian 
communities  of  the  time.    It  was  not  new, 


104      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

however,  to  theologians,  for  it  had  appeared 
in  the  writings  of  the  "Federal  School"  of 
theology,  of  which  the  Dutchman,  Cocceius, 
was  the  reputed  founder.  The  mind  of 
Campbell  seems  to  have  been  thoroughly 
saturated  with  the  covenant  ideas  of  this 
school.  Some  of  the  preachers  present  at 
the  delivery  of  the  discourse  took  alarm  be- 
fore it  was  finished  and  held  a  hurried  con- 
sultation as  to  the  best  means  of  protest 
against  it.  It  was  finally  decided  that  it 
was  "  better  to  let  it  pass  and  let  the  people 
judge  for  themselves."  Opposition,  how- 
ever, did  not  rest  here.  A  movement  was 
quietly  set  on  foot  at  this  meeting  with  the 
avowed  purpose  of  counteracting  the  influ- 
ence of  the  Campbells  and  ridding  the 
Association  of  them.  At  this  same  meet- 
ing Thomas  Campbell,  who  lived  in  Pitts- 
burg, brought  a  letter  from  a  small  church, 
which  he  had  gathered  together  there,  ask- 
ing union  as  a  church  with  the  Association. 
It  was  voted,  "that  as  this  letter  is  not 


Alexander  Campbell  as  a  Baptist  105 

presented  according  to  the  constitution  of 
this  Association,  the  request  cannot  be 
granted."  A  "Circular  Letter,"  or  essay 
upon  the  "Trinity,"  presented  by  Thomas 
Campbell,  met  with  a  better  reception, 
having  been  "accepted  without  amend- 
ment." 

Alexander  Campbell  was  engaged  for  the 
most  part  during  the  years  from  1813  to 
1820  in  managing  his  farm,  given  to  him  by 
his  father-in-law;  conducting  a  seminary 
chiefly  for  young  men  at  his  home,  called 
"Buffalo  Seminary,"  at  Bethany,  West 
Virginia;  and  making  preaching  tours 
among  Baptist  churches  in  the  neigh- 
boring regions.  After  the  preaching  of 
the  Sermon  on  the  Law,  and  on  account 
of  the  suspicion  and  enmity  arising  out  of 
it,  his  preaching  among  Baptist  churches 
was  somewhat  restricted.  He  says:  "  Till 
this  time  we  had  labored  much  among  the 
Baptists  with  good  effect."  "I  itinerated 
less  than  before  in  my  labors  in  the  gospel 


lo6      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

and  confined  my  attention  to  three  or  four 
little  communities  constituted  on  the  Bible, 
one  in  Ohio,  one  in  Virginia,  and  two  in 
Pennsylvania.  Once  or  twice  a  year  1  made 
excursions  amongst  the  regular  Baptists, 
but  with  little  hope  of  being  useful  to  the 
Redstone  Association." 

While  Alexander  Campbell  was  a  Baptist 
in  all  essential  respects,  as  he  viewed  it,  yet 
he  was  not  so  thoroughly  denomination- 
alized  that  he  could  not  be  free  in  his  atti- 
tude towards  their  beliefs  and  practices. 
The  attitude  of  the  Baptists  towards  him 
varied;  some  received  him,  others  rejected 
him.  But  there  was  no  doubt  among  Bap- 
tists that  upon  the  mode  of  baptism,  he  stood 
upon  their  ground.  He  was  chosen  out  of  all 
defenders  of  the  Baptist  faith  in  that  region 
to  represent  and  champion  the  Baptist  cause 
in  a  debate  with  a  Presbyterian  minister  by 
the  name  of  John  Walker,  of  Mount  Pleasant, 
Ohio.  Mr.  Walker  challenged  Mr.  Birch,  or 
any  other  Baptist,  to  debate  the  question  of 


Alexander  Campbell  as  a  Baptist  107 

baptism,  and  engaged  to  prove,  '*  That 
baptism  came  in  the  room  of  circumcision; 
that  the  covenant  on  which  the  Jewish 
church  was  built,  and  to  which  circumcision 
was  a  seal,  is  the  same  with  the  covenant 
on  which  the  Christian  church  is  built,  and 
to  which  baptism  is  the  seal;  that  the  Jews 
and  Christians  are  the  same  body  politic 
under  the  same  lawgiver  and  husband, 
consequently  the  infants  of  believers  have  a 
right  to  baptism."  Mr.  Birch  had  some 
difficulty  in  persuading  Campbell  to  enter 
the  debate,  on  account  of  his  doubt  of  the 
utility  of  it  in  promoting  the  truth  or  the 
unity  of  Christians.  He  finally  consented, 
and  the  debate  was  held  June  19-20,  1820, 
at  Mount  Pleasant,  Ohio,  twenty-three  miles 
from  Mr.  Campbell's  home.  Mr.  Walker 
based  his  argument  for  infant  baptism  upon 
the  identity  of  the  Jewish  and  Christian 
covenants,  and  upon  the  equal  authority  of 
the  Old  and  New  Testaments.  Mr.  Camp- 
bell entertained  the  contrary  view  which 


lo8      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

appeared  in  his  Sermon  on  the  Laic.  In  the 
baptismal  controversy  of  the  times  as  usually 
carried  on  between  Baptists  and  Pedobap- 
tists,  they  stood  on  the  same  ground  in  a 
common  recognition  of  the  authority  of  the 
Old  Covenant.  It  was  something  new  and 
startling  to  Mr.  Walker,  when  Campbell 
cut  the  Gordian  knot  at  a  stroke  by  assum- 
ing the  complete  annulment  of  the  Old 
Covenant  in  the  death  of  Christ.  The  de- 
bate reduced  itself  to  a  discussion  of  the 
authority  or  validity  of  the  Jewish  Cove- 
nant in  the  Christian  church. 

Another  novelty  in  the  way  of  an  argu- 
ment against  infant  baptism  introduced  by 
Mr.  Campbell  in  the  debate  was  his  view  of 
the  design  of  baptism.  The  argument  is 
scarcely  more  than  suggested  in  the  follow- 
ing words :  "  Baptism  is  connected  with  the 
promise  of  the  remission  of  sins  and  the 
gift  of  the  Holy  Spirit."  The  doctrine  was 
subsequently  to  play  a  large  part  in  the  de- 
bates of  Campbell,  in  the  controversy  with 


Alexander  Campbell  as  a  Baptist  109 

the  Baptists,  and  in  the  evangelistic  preach- 
ing of  the  Disciples. 

The  opportunities  and  issues  of  the  debate 
were  such  as  to  convince  Campbell  that  "a 
week's  debating  is  worth  a  year's  preach- 
ing," and  to  dispose  him  so  favorably  to  the 
debate  as  a  means  of  disseminating  truth, 
that  he  issued  a  challenge  at  the  close  "to 
meet  any  Pedobaptist  minister  of  any  de- 
nomination and  prove  that  Infant  Sprinkling 
is  a  human  tradition  and  injurious  to  the 
well-being  of  society,  religious  and  polit- 
ical." The  debate  was  printed  and  circu- 
lated very  widely  among  the  Baptists,  who 
felt  that  they  had  the  best  of  the  argument, 
and  extended  the  influence  and  fame  of 
Campbell  beyond  the  reach  of  his  living 
voice.  While  some  Baptists  "remained 
extremely  dubious  in  regard  to  the  ortho- 
doxy of  their  champion,"  others  took  grate- 
ful pride  in  him,  and  felt  as  one  Baptist  de- 
clared, that  "he  had  done  more  for  the 
Baptists  than  any  man  in  the  West." 


110      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

In  the  printing  and  circulation  of  the  de- 
bate, which  was  frequently  heard  from  at  a 
distance,  Campbell  discovered  the  power 
and  usefulness  of  the  press.  He  determined 
to  make  larger  use  of  it  as  a  means  of  get- 
ting his  teachings  before  the  Baptist  world 
especially.  He  felt  that  the  Baptists  offered 
the  best  opportunity  for  reformatory  work 
upon  biblical  principles  because  ''they  read 
the  Bible  and  seemed  to  care  for  little  else  in 
religion  than  'conversion'  and  'Bible  doc- 
trine.'" He  wrote  in  1824  as  follows: 
"There  is  one  vast  difference,  one  essential 
and  all-important  difference  betwixt  the 
Baptist  and  Pedobaptist  views  and  societies. 
The  Baptist  views  of  the  Church  of  Jesus 
Christ  are  constitutionally  correct;  the  Pedo- 
baptist views  are  unconstitutional."  "The 
Baptist  system  is  capable  of  being  reformed 
or  brought  back  again  to  the  constitution  of 
the  kingdom  of  heaven;  the  Pedobaptist 
cannot." 

While  he  believed  that   "the  Baptist 


Alexander  Campbell  as  a  Baptist  1 1 1 

society  had  as  much  liberality  in  their  views, 
as  much  of  the  ancient  simplicity  of  the 
Christian  religion,  as  much  of  the  spirit  of 
Christianity  among  them,  as  was  to  be 
found  amongst  other  people";  yet  he  also 
believed  that  "there  was  in  the  views  and 
practices  of  this  large  and  widely  extended 
community,  as  great  need  of  reformation, 
and  of  a  restoration  of  the  ancient  order  of 
things,"  "as  of  any  sect  in  Christendom." 
To  extend  more  widely  and  promote  more 
rapidly  among  the  Baptists  and  all  Protestant 
denominations  his  reformatory  teachings,  he 
established  in  1823  a  monthly  periodical 
which  he  called  the  Christian  Baptist.  He 
announced  in  the  prospectus  that  its  sole 
object  should  be  "the  eviction  of  truth,  and 
the  exposure  of  error  in  doctrine  and  prac- 
tice. The  editor,  acknowledging  no  stand- 
ard of  religious  faith  or  works  other  than 
the  Old  and  New  Testaments,  and  the  latter 
as  the  only  standard  of  the  religion  of  Jesus 
Christ,  will,  intentionally  at  least,  oppose 


1 1  2      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

nothing  which  it  contains,  and  recommend 
nothing  which  it  does  not  enjoin."  He 
dedicated  the  work  "to  all  those  without 
distinction,  who  acknowledge  the  Scriptures 
of  the  Old  and  New  Testaments  to  be  a  true 
revelation  from  God,  and  the  New  Testa- 
ment as  containing  the  religion  of  Jesus 
Christ;  who,  willing  to  have  all  religious 
tenets  and  practices  tried  by  the  Divine 
Word;  and  who,  feeling  themselves  in 
duty  bound  to  search  the  Scriptures  for 
themselves  in  all  matters  of  religion — are 
disposed  to  reject  all  doctrine  and  com- 
mandments of  men,  and  to  obey  the  truth, 
holding  fast  the  faith  once  delivered  to  the 
saints.' 

The  notable  thing  to  be  observed  in  this 
program  of  action  is  the  absence  of  all 
reference  to  Christian  union.  The  em- 
phasis now  rests  upon  the  principle  of 
scriptural  authority  and  primitive  precept 
and  example.  The  watchword  is  now  ref- 
ormation not  union.   The  principle  of  unity 


Alexander  Campbell  as  a  Baptist  1 13 

has  been  subordinated  to  the  principle  of 
apostolicity.  Even  the  union  of  the  Brush 
Run  church  with  the  Baptist  association 
was  quite  as  much  an  expression  of  devo- 
tion to  apostolicity  as  of  desire  for  unity. 
They  made  no  concession  for  the  sake  of 
the  union.  The  union  of  the  people  of 
God  had  become  a  hopeless  task  and  must 
be  postponed  until  their  faith  and  practice 
had  been  squared  with  the  Divine  Stand- 
ard. He  did  not  doubt  the  validity  or 
the  correctness  of  his  method  of  procedure 
or  his  principle  of  adjustment.  Primitive 
Christianity  which  was  put  forth  in  the 
Declaration  and  Address  as  a  principle 
of  unity,  but  left  undefined  and  uncertain, 
had  been  undergoing  a  progressive  defini- 
tion in  the  terms  of  a  local  Christian  fellow- 
ship in  the  Brush  Run  church,  and  was 
now  to  be  given  still  more  careful  definition 
and  settlement  in  application  to  Baptist  faith 
and  practice.  The  results  of  that  definition 
were  the  gradual  separation  and  alienation 


114      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

of  the  Christian  Association,  first  from 
Pedobaptist  churches  and  finally  from 
Baptist  churches.  The  more  they  learned 
from  the  Scriptures  as  to  the  terms  of  Chris- 
tian union  and  communion,  the  more  diffi- 
cult it  was  to  enter  into  union  or  to  main- 
tain union  with  existing  religious  bodies. 
They  defined  the  essential  elements  of 
primitive  Christianity  in  the  direction  of  a 
growing  separatism.  It  proved  to  be  a 
principle  of  exclusion  and  division,  rather 
than  a  principle  of  comprehension  and 
union.  The  series  of  articles  in  the  pages 
of  the  Christian  Baptist  on  "The  Ancient 
Order  of  Things,"  completed  and  fixed  the 
definition  of  Christianity  for  those  who  at- 
tached themselves  to  ''the  new  reforma- 
tion." The  essential  elements  of  primitive 
Christianity  were  made  to  consist  in  "an 
order  of  things."  They  were  very  careful 
of  the  way  they  did  things  in  the  public 
worship,  in  the  celebration  and  administra- 
tion of  the  ordinances,  in  the  organization 


/ 

Alexander  Campbell  as  a  Baptist  1 1 5 

of  local  churches,  and  in  the  propaga- 
tion of  the  gospel.  In  many  instances  it 
came  very  near  being  a  tithing  of  mint, 
anise,  and  cummin,  and  a  neglecting  of  the 
weightier  matters  of  the  law.  Christianity 
was  defined,  the  terms  of  Christian  com- 
munion were  fixed,  according  to  the  letter 
of  Scripture,  and  the  result  was  a  legalistic 
formalism.  The  extreme  literalism  of  the 
teaching  of  this  first  period  was  sure  to 
produce  a  reaction  and  to  create  two  parties 
within  the  movement,  the  literal  and  the 
spiritual.  Campbell  himself  and  the  larger 
part  of  the  body  recoiled  from  this  early 
position  in  the  direction  of  a  more  spiritual 
interpretation  of  Christianity.  The  two 
parties  have  survived  to  the  present  time  in 
the  body,  with  varying  degrees  of  coopera- 
tion or  strife. 

Scarcely  three  numbers  of  the  Christian 
Baptist  had  appeared  from  the  press  before 
Alexander  Campbell  was  called  upon  to 
engage  in  a  debate  with  a  Presbyterian 


The  Disciples  of  Christ 

preacher  of  Kentucky.  It  grew  out  of  the 
previous  debate  with  Mr.  Walker.  Camp- 
bell's challenge  at  the  close  of  that  debate 
was  accepted  by  the  Rev.  W.  L.  Maccalla, 
of  Washington,  Kentucky.  He  felt  that 
the  strongest  word  for  infant  baptism  on 
the  ground  of  the  identity  of  the  Jewish 
and  Christian  covenants,  had  not  been 
spoken  by  Mr.  Walker.  The  debate  cov- 
ered the  same  ground  and  dealt  with  the 
same  arguments  and  counter-arguments  as 
in  the  previous  debate.  It  was  an  arrayal 
of  the  Baptist  against  the  Pedobaptist  po- 
sition. On  this  occasion,  as  on  the  former, 
Campbell  went  as  the  representative  and 
champion  of  the  Baptist  cause,  and  was  re- 
ceived into  Baptist  churches  and  homes 
everywhere  throughout  Kentucky.  He 
brought  with  him  copies  of  the  Christian 
Baptist  which  he  gave  to  the  Baptist 
preachers  present,  warning  them  in  the 
meantime  that  he  had  quite  as  much 
against  the  Baptists  as  against  the  Presby- 


Alexander  Campbell  as  a  Baptist  1 17 

terians.  In  this  debate  he  developed  at 
greater  length  his  doctrine  of  the  design  of 
baptism  as  an  argument  against  infant  bap- 
tism and  said:  **The  water  of  baptism, 
then,  formally  washes  away  our  sins.  The 
blood  of  Christ  really  washes  away  our 
sins.  Paul's  sins  were  really  pardoned 
when  he  believed.  Yet  he  had  no  solemn 
pledge  of  the  fact,  no  formal  acquittal,  no 
formal  purgation  of  his  sins  until  he  washed 
them  away  in  the  water  of  baptism." 
"One  argument  from  this  topic  is  that  bap- 
tism being  ordained  to  be  to  a  believer,  a 
formal  and  personal  remission  of  all  his 
sins,  cannot  be  administered  to  an  infant 
without  the  greatest  perversion  and  abuse 
of  the  nature  and  import  of  this  ordinance. 
Indeed,  why  should  an  infant  that  never 
sinned  ...  be  baptized  for  the  remission 
of  sins.?"  Feeling  that  this  doctrine  was 
new  to  both  Baptists  and  Presbyterians,  he 
said:  "  My  Baptist  brethren,  as  well  as  the 
Pedobaptist's  brotherhood,  I  humbly  con- 


ii8      The  Disciples  of  Christ 


ceive,  require  to  be  admonished  on  this 
point.  You  have  been,  some  of  you  no 
doubt,  too  diffident  in  asserting  this  grand 
import  of  baptism." 

True  to  his  promise  made  in  the  prospec- 
tus of  the  Christian  Baptist,  in  the  very  first 
numbers  he  began  a  crusade  against  the 
errors  in  doctrine  and  practice  of  all  the  de- 
nominations, the  Baptists  in  particular.  His 
program  was,  first,  the  destruction  of  false 
doctrines  and  erroneous  practices  in  the  de- 
nominations that  acknowledged  allegiance 
to  the  Scriptures,  and  the  reduction  of  their 
systems  to  a  common  agreement,  and  then 
would  inevitably  follow  a  union  of  Chris- 
tians. As  expressed  by  a  writer  in  the 
Christian  Baptist:  "To  attempt  union 
among  jarring  sects  which  are  established 
upon  different  foundations,  without  the  ex- 
plosion of  their  foundations,  is  altogether 
fruitless."  The  work  of  undermining  and 
blowing  up  the  foundations  of  other  people's 
houses  is  not  a  very  cordial  way  of  ap- 


Alexander  Campbell  as  a  Baptist  1 19 

preaching  them,  nor  likely  to  be  a  very  suc- 
cessful way  of  winning  their  sympathy. 
There  was  not  a  custom,  or  doctrine,  or 
ceremony  maintained  by  any  denomination, 
which  was  not  tried  and  tested,  squared  and 
measured,  by  a  severely  literal  application  of 
the  text  of  Scripture.  As  a  consequence 
there  were  very  few  denominational  prac- 
tices for  which  Campbell  found  any  scriptural 
authority.  The  Scriptures  nowhere  spoke 
of  "  missionary  societies,"  "  Bible  societies," 
"associations,"  ''synods,"  "presbyteries," 
"creeds,"  "confessions  of  faith,"  "  clergy- 
men," "  bishops,"  "reverends,"  "doctors  of 
divinity,"  and  a  multitude  of  other  innova- 
tions in  use  in  modern  Christian  society,  con- 
sequently they  should  have  no  place  in  the 
church  of  to-day.  He  cast  them  all  out 
upon  the  ecclesiastical  scrap  pile.  No  mat- 
ter if  in  the  general  renovation  and  house- 
cleaning  some  useful  and  valuable  things 
were  thrown  out — the  work  must  be 
thoroughly   and   finally   done.    He  was 


120      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

cautioned  by  Robert  Semple,  the  most  emi- 
nent Baptist  of  the  time,  that  there  was 
danger  of  "running  past  Jerusalem  as  one 
hastens  out  of  Babylon";  but  he  replied: 
"  We  are  convinced,  that  the  whole  head  is 
sick,  and  the  whole  heart  faint  of  modern 
fashionable  Christianity — that  many  of  the 
schemes  of  the  populars  resemble  the  de- 
lirium, the  wild  fancies  of  a  subject  of  fever, 
in  its  highest  paroxysms — and  that  these 
most  fashionable  projects  deserve  no  more 
regard  from  sober  Christians,  Christians  in- 
telligent in  the  New  Testament,  than  the 
vagaries,  the  febrile  flights,  of  patients  in  an 
inflammatory  fever."  He  spoke  this  of 
Bible  societies,  but  he  included  all  other 
agencies  for  the  spread  of  the  gospel  which 
were  without  the  sanction  of  apostolic  ex- 
ample. 

He  was  moved  with  the  spirit  of  the  most 
furious  iconoclasm.  Nothing  escaped  his 
sarcasm  and  invective,  in  the  use  of  which 
he  was  an  adept.    He  cared  little  whether 


Alexander  Campbell  as  a  Baptist  121 


his  remedy  hurt  or  not;  the  disease  was 
malignant,  the  remedy  must  be  severe.  As 
a  consequence,  Campbell  did  not  get  him- 
self well  liked  by  everybody.  One  man 
wrote  in  1823:  **  I  request  you  to  send  me 
the  Christian  Baptist  no  more,  my  con- 
science is  wounded  that  I  should  have  sub- 
scribed for  such  a  work.  It  is  a  religious 
incendiary  and  will  do  a  world  of  mischief." 
Another  wrote:  ''Your  paper  is  a  disor- 
ganizer  and  I  doubt  not  will  prove  deistical 
in  the  end."  After  sending  the  paper  for 
some  time  to  the  reading  rooms  of  a  society 
at  Hamilton  Seminary  at  the  request  of  the 
students,  they  wrote  saying:  "For  reasons 
which  we  are  willing  frankly  to  avow,  our 
society  has  recently  come  to  the  resolution 
to  ask  you  to  discontinue  your  publication." 
Spencer  Clack,  a  Baptist  minister,  wrote  to 
Campbell  from  Kentucky  saying:  "Some 
are  for  you,  others  against  you;  some  ap- 
prove, others  censure  and  condemn;  such 
is  the  state  of  affairs;  such  the  effect  pro- 


122      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

duced  by  your  writing.  But  let  me  ask, 
what  is  the  great  good  which  such  division 
will  achieve?"  Campbell  was  denounced 
in  public  and  in  private  by  the  Baptists  as  a 
"Unitarian,"  "a  Socinian,"  an'^Antino- 
mian,"  "a  Pelagian,"  and  "a  Deist";  and 
where  that  did  not  succeed  in  stirring  up 
prejudice,  they  said,  "he  stole  a  horse," 
"was  excommunicated  for  drunkenness," 
and  "married  his  first  wife's  sister."  He 
had  put  out  in  1826  a  revised  edition  of  the 
New  Testament,  translated  by  Campbell, 
Doddridge  and  McKnight,  and  so  bitter  was 
the  prejudice  awakened  against  it  that  one 
man  solemnly  consigned  a  copy  of  it  to  the 
flames. 

It  was  a  serious  question  in  the  minds  of 
many  Baptists  whether  they  could  consci- 
entiously include  Campbell  in  their  fellow- 
ship, or  whether  he  could  consistently  and 
honestly  call  himself  a  Baptist.  Concern- 
ing this  he  wrote  in  the  Christian  Baptist  in 
1826  as  follows:    "I  and  the  church  with 


Alexander  Campbell  as  a  Baptist  123 

which  I  am  connected  are  in  *  full  com- 
munion '  with  the  Mahoning  Baptist  As- 
sociation of  Ohio;  and  through  them  with 
the  whole  Baptist  society  in  the  United 
States;  and  I  do  intend  to  continue  in  con- 
nection with  this  people  so  long  as  they 
will  permit  me  to  say  what  I  believe,  to 
teach  what  I  am  assured  of,  and  to  censure 
what  is  amiss  in  their  views  and  practices." 
When  charged  with  inconsistency  in  claim- 
ing ''full  fellowship  with  the  whole  Baptist 
society  "  and  yet  censuring  many  of  their 
views  and  practices,  he  said:  "But  what 
constitutes  consistency  ?  In  acting  con- 
formably to  our  own  professed  senti- 
ments and  principles;  or  in  acting  con- 
formably to  the  professed  sentiments  and 
principles  of  others?"  He  was  ready  to 
hold  Christian  communion  with  any  per- 
son or  group  of  persons  who  confessed 
that  Jesus  was  the  Christ,  and  was  bap- 
tized as  a  testimony  to  it,  and  lived  a  blame- 
less Christian  life.    Nothing  more  and  noth- 


124      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

ing  less  than  this  should  constitute  the  con- 
ditions of  Christian  fellowship.  On  these 
terms  he  received  all  Baptists  into  fellow- 
ship. The  difficulty  was  not  on  his  side 
but  on  their  side.  They  fulfilled  all  his  re- 
quirements for  communion,  but  he  did  not 
fulfill  all  their  requirements.  It  was  just 
this  more-than-enough  for  simple  Christian 
fellowship  in  Baptist  requirements,  such  as 
the  relation  of  an  experience  and  subscrip- 
tion to  a  creed,  with  which  he  quarrelled. 
He  refused  to  regard  communion  with  a 
religious  body  as  implying  "an  entire  ap- 
probation of  all  their  views,  doctrines  and 
practice,  as  a  society  or  individuals."  His 
principle  was  that  unity  of  opinion  is  not 
essential  to  Christian  union." 

It  was  still  an  unsettled  question  with 
him  in  1825  whether  immersion  should  be 
made  a  test  of  fellowship  among  Christians. 
He  said :  "I  frankly  own  that  my  full  con- 
viction is  that  there  are  many  Pedobaptist 
congregations,  of  whose  Christianity  I  think 


Alexander  Campbell  as  a  Baptist  I25 

as  highly  as  of  most  Baptist  congregations, 
and  with  whom  1  could  wish  to  be  on  the 
very  same  terms  of  Christian  communion 
on  which  1  stand  with  the  whole  Baptist 
society."  He  thought  that  there  were  as 
good  scriptural  grounds  for  Baptists  and 
Pedobaptists  to  eat  the  Lord's  supper  to- 
gether as  to  have  fellowship  in  other  acts 
of  social  worship.  He  was  not  ready, 
however,  to  go  the  full  length  of  receiv- 
ing the  unimmersed  into  fellowship.  Per- 
sonally he  would  receive  them,  but  he 
could  not  make  his  own  personal  disposi- 
tion a  law  for  the  entire  Christian  brother- 
hood. He  finally  settled  into  the  practice 
of  making  immersion  a  test  of  fellowship 
in  the  local  congregation,  but  not  a  prereq- 
uisite to  partaking  of  the  Lord's  supper. 
In  this  he  broke  with  the  Baptist  custom  of 
close  communion,  and  settled  the  practice 
for  all  reforming  Baptist  churches. 

The  Christian  Baptist  grew  rapidly  in 
circulation,  especially  among  Baptists,  and 


126      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

contributed  in  no  small  measure,  together 
with  his  published  debates  and  preaching 
tours  through  all  parts  of  the  country,  in 
creating  a  rapidly  increasing  party  in  the 
Baptist  denomination  which  was  called 
"Reformers"  or  "reforming  Baptists," 
and  otherwise  stigmatized  as  "Camp- 
beIliles"or  "  Restorationers." 

^ 


CHAPTER  VII 


THE  REFORMERS  AMONG  THE  BAPTISTS 

There  can  be  no  doubt  that  Campbell  had 
designs  with  reference  to  the  Baptist  de- 
nomination, and  that  he  had  reasons  for 
gratification  at  the  increasing  success  of  his 
propaganda.  There  appeared  from  time  to 
time  in  the  columns  of  the  Christian  Baptist 
reports  of  the  progress  of  "the  reforma- 
tion "  that  were  characterized  by  a  note  of 
calm  assurance  and  certainty  of  triumph. 
He  felt  that  the  Baptists  were  not  living  up 
to  their  principles  and  that  he  was  confer- 
ring a  favor  upon  them  by  calling  their  at- 
tention to  primitive  Christian  customs  in 
which  they  were  lacking  or  from  which 
they  were  going  astray.  He  felt  himself  to 
be  their  best  friend,  and  that  "every  well- 
meant  effort  to  bring  them  up  to  the  primi- 
tive state  of  the  church,  as  far  as  Scripture 
127 


128      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

and  reason  approbate,  ought  to  be  counte- 
nanced, aided  and  abetted  by  every  one  that 
loves  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  in  sincerity." 
Just  here  was  his  advantage  and  the  secret 
of  his  success  among  them,  that  he  stood  on 
their  ground  and  was  in  agreement  with 
them  on  essential  and  distinctive  Baptist 
principles.  Spencer  Clack  wrote  to  him  in 
1827,  saying:  "Observe,  between  you  and 
your  Baptist  brethren,  there  is  no  difference 
of  opinion  as  to  rule  of  faith  and  practice. 
On  this  subject  we  all  speak  the  same 
language;  we  all  acknowledge  the  same 
authority;  all  profess  to  be  governed  by  it. 
What  then,  is  the  difference  between  us  ? 
Simply  this:  we  cannot  agree  as  to  what 
the  Bible  teaches.  The  Baptists  think  the 
Bible  teaches  the  doctrine  contained  in  their 
creeds;  you  think  it  teaches  what  you  have 
written  and  published,  and  what  you  will 
hereafter  write  and  publish."  Campbell 
was  holding  up  Baptist  faith  and  practice  to 
a  strict  conformity  to  apostolic  example. 


Reformers  Among  the  Baptists  129 

and  assumed  as  an  underlying  presupposi- 
tion that  the  New  Testament  contained  a 
perfect  and  complete  model  of  the  Christian 
institution,  in  faith,  life,  ordinances,  or- 
ganization and  discipline. 

He  easily  persuaded  many  ministers  and 
laymen  among  them  that  his  view  of  the 
matter  was  correct.  His  reformatory  teach- 
ing first  found  acceptance  in  the  minds  of  a 
few  ministers  who  became  centres  of  agita- 
tion in  Baptist  churches  and  associations. 
One  of  the  earliest,  and  typical  of  all  the 
rest,  was  P.  S.  Fall,  the  young  pastor  of  the 
church  at  Louisville,  Kentucky,  who  first 
made  the  acquaintance  of  Campbell's  views 
by  reading  the  Christian  Baptist  and  the 
Sermon  on  the  Law.  He  began  to  preach 
the  new  doctrines  in  his  Louisville  church. 
Alexander  Campbell  came  to  Louisville  in 
1824  and  under  the  direction  of  Mr.  Fall, 
made  several  addresses  in  the  Baptist  and 
Presbyterian  churches.  So  completely  was 
the  Baptist  church  imbued  with  his  ideas 


130      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

that  they  repudiated  their  constitution  and 
creed  and  adopted  the  Bible  as  their  only 
rule  of  faith  and  practice  and  introduced  the 
"  ancient  order  of  things  "  into  the  organiza- 
tion and  worship  of  the  church.  At  the 
meeting  of  the  Long  Run  Association,  of 
which  the  church  was  a  member,  Septem- 
ber, 1825,  Mr.  Fall  read  the  "circular  letter" 
in  which  he  maintained  that  "the  word  of 
God  was  the  only  sufficient  and  perfect  rule 
of  faith  and  practice,"  against  the  use  of 
creeds,  as  was  then  customary  in  Baptist 
churches.  The  church  sent  the  following 
queries  to  the  Association  for  answer: 
"I.  Is  there  any  authority  in  the  New 
Testament  for  religious  bodies  to  make  hu- 
man creeds  and  confessions  of  faith  the 
constitutions  or  directories  of  such  bodies  in 
matters  of  faith  and  practice?"  "2.  Is 
there  any  authority  in  the  New  Testament 
for  associations  ?  If  so,  what  is  it  ?  If  not, 
why  are  they  held?"  Similar  queries, 
showing  the  leavening  influence  of  Camp- 


Reformers  Among  the  Baptists  131 

bell's  ideas,  were  sent  by  the  churches  at 
Elk  Creek  and  Shelbyville.  By  such  queries 
the  ideas  of  Campbell  were  forced  upon  the 
attention  of  entire  associations  representing 
many  ministers  and  churches.  The  letter 
read  by  Fall  was  rejected  by  the  casting 
vote  of  the  moderator,  Geo.  Waller,  so 
evenly  was  the  Association  divided.  A 
strict  Baptist  element  in  the  church  at 
Louisville  resisted  the  introduction  of  the 
"ancient  order,"  and  in  1829,  at  a 
stormy  meeting,  the  leader  seized  the 
books  of  the  church  and  cried  out, 
"All  who  are  for  the  old  constitution 
follow  me."  About  thirty  persons  with- 
drew and  formed  a  new  church.  Two 
Baptist  congregations  were  thus  formed, 
the  one  called  "  Campbellites,"  the  other 
"  Wallerites."  A  lawsuit  over  the  posses- 
sion of  the  property  took  place  in  which  the 
Reformers  were  victorious,  though  both 
parties  continued  to  meet  in  the  church  at 
different  hours.    They  retained  the  name  of 


132      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

"  First  Baptist  Church  of  Jesus  Christ"  and 
membership  in  the  Long  Run  Association 
until  1833,  when  they  assumed  the  name 
"Church  of  Christ."  After  leaving  Louis- 
ville, Mr.  Fall  preached  for  a  time  for  the 
Baptist  church  at  Frankfort,  where  he  laid 
the  foundation  of  a  "Reformed  Baptist" 
church,  and  later  became  pastor  of  the 
Baptist  church  of  Nashville,  Tennessee.  It 
was  not  long  before  this  church  introduced 
the  "ancient  order,"  and  refused  to  become 
a  member  of  the  Concord  Association  of 
Baptist  churches,  unless  given  perfect  free- 
dom with  respect  to  the  doctrine  and 
government  of  the  church.  When  the 
separation  of  the  Reformers  from  the  Bap- 
tists took  place,  this  church  stood  solidly 
with  the  new  reformation.  Campbell  came 
to  Nashville  in  1826  for  the  benefit  of  his 
wife's  health  and  spent  several  weeks,  dur- 
ing which  he  delivered  many  sermons  and 
addresses. 

John  Smith  was  another  Baptist  minister 


Reformers  Among  the  Baptists  133 

of  Kentucky  who  accepted  the  teachings 
of  Campbell  and  was  instrumental  in  in- 
doctrinating many  Baptist  churches  and 
forming  new  ones  upon  "the  New  Testa- 
ment basis."  Though  he  had  heard  much 
of  Alexander  Campbell,  both  for  and  against 
him,  and  had  read  the  Christian  Baptist  and 
his  debates,  he  first  met  him  in  1824.  By 
private  conversation  and  public  discourses 
Campbell  removed  many  religious  difficult- 
ies from  his  mind,  and  after  a  year  of  care- 
ful study  of  the  Bible  he  "commenced  the 
advocacy  of  the  Bible  as  a  sufficient  rule  of 
faith  and  practice."  In  his  preaching  he 
was  distinguished  by  the  keenness  of  his 
logic,  the  quaintness  of  his  wit  and  humor, 
and  the  earnestness  and  fervor  of  his  spirit. 
He  was  by  all  odds  the  most  popular  and 
successful  of  Baptist  preachers  with  the 
common  people.  He  had  little  or  no  school 
training,  but  was  gifted  by  nature  with 
mother  wit  and  human  sympathy  as  few 
men  are.    He  worked  his  way  up  from 


134      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

youth  through  the  bitterest  hardships,  gave 
himself  to  the  ministry  in  the  Baptist  church, 
and  had  thought  his  way  out  of  the  contra- 
dictions and  blighting  spiritual  influences  of 
hyper-Calvinism,  when  he  began  to  read  the 
writings  of  Campbell.  He  had  felt  the  prac- 
tical dilficulty  of  preaching  to  sinners  the 
doctrine  of  their  utter  depravity  and  moral 
helplessness  without  the  aid  of  the  Spirit, 
and  then  calling  upon  them  to  repent  and 
believe  the  gospel  on  pain  of  eternal  dam- 
nation. It  was  a  moment  of  deliverance 
from  bondage  when  his  mind  swung  free 
from  Calvinistic  fatalism  under  the  teaching 
of  the  New  Testament  as  unfolded  by 
Campbell  in  the  Christian  Baptist.  The 
doctrine  that  it  was  in  the  power  of  every 
sinner  to  believe  that  Jesus  was  the  Christ, 
the  Son  of  God,  upon  the  testimony  given 
in  the  Scriptures  concerning  him,  and  that 
this  was  saving  faith,  became  the  founda- 
tion of  a  new  career  of  evangelism  which 
he  inaugurated  in  1823.    He  went  every- 


Reformers  Among  the  Baptists  135 

where  among  Baptist  churches  in  Kentucky 
calling  on  sinners  to  repent  at  once  and  be- 
lieve in  Jesus  Christ,  and  be  immersed  for 
the  remission  of  sins.  The  regions  of  his 
evangelistic  activity  were  for  the  most  part 
the  boundaries  of  two  or  three  Baptist  as- 
sociations— the  North  District,  Bracken,  and 
Boone's  Creek.  The  greater  part  of  his 
preaching  had  been  done  in  four  churches  of 
the  North  District  Association.  One  of  these 
was  the  church  at  Lulbegrud,  which  at  the 
meeting  of  the  Association  in  1827  presented 
charges  against  certain  preachers  who  had  de- 
parted from  Paptist  usage.  They  were  aimed 
at  Smith,  who  had  been  unwearied  in  preach- 
ing and  baptizing  people  after  "the  ancient 
order  of  things."  Crowds  of  people  came  to 
hear  him  and  he  baptized  them  by  the  score, 
sometimes  constituting  new  churches  out 
of  the  number,  which  took  their  places  as 
members  of  some  Baptist  association.  He 
was  quite  as  zealous,  however,  against  the 
old  order  as  he  was  in  favor  of  the  new 


136      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

order.  He  said  to  his  wife,  as  he  was 
summing  up  the  results  of  a  few  months' 
work  in  1828:  "Nancy,  I  have  baptised 
seven  hundred  sinners  and  capsized  fifteen 
hundred  Baptists."  He  was  so  successful 
in  the  latter  activity  among  the  Baptists  of 
the  North  District  Association  that  out  of 
twenty-six  churches  composing  it,  eighteen 
stood  on  the  side  of  the  reformation  when 
the  division  came.  As  an  illustration  of  his 
dramatic  and  convincing  methods,  the  fol- 
lowing incident  is  related  concerning  him: 
A  methodist  minister  had  been  seen  to  bap- 
tize a  struggling,  crying  infant  in  the  place 
where  he  was  holding  a  meeting.  The 
next  day  when  Smith  was  baptizing  some 
persons  in  a  stream,  he  saw  the  minister  in 
the  crowd.  He  walked  up  and  seized  him 
by  the  arm  and  drew  him  towards  the  water 
— "  What  are  you  going  to  do,  Mr.  Smith  ?  " 
said  the  preacher.  am  going  to  baptize 
you,  sir."  "  But  I  do  not  wish  to  be  bap- 
tized."   * '  Do  you  not  believe  ?  "  said  Smith. 


Reformers  Among  the  Baptists  137 

** Certainly  I  do."  "Then  come  along,  sir, 
believers ' must  be  baptized."  "But  I  am 
not  willing  to  go,"  said  the  Methodist.  "  It 
certainly  would  do  me  no  good  to  be  bap- 
tized against  my  will."  "  Did  you  not,  but 
yesterday,  baptize  a  helpless  babe  against 
its  will?"  Turning  to  the  audience  Smith 
said:  "  But  friends,  let  me  know  if  he  ever 
again  baptizes  others  without  their  full  con- 
sent; for  you  yourselves  have  heard  him  de- 
clare that  such  a  baptism  cannot  possibly 
do  any  good." 

In  the  districts  covered  by  his  preaching 
were  many  churches  of  the  "New  Lights" 
or  "Stoneites,"  the  followers  of  Barton  W. 
Stone,  whose  acquaintance  and  friendship 
he  was  zealous  in  cultivating,  much  to  the 
scandal  of  his  Baptist  brethren.  He  was 
later  to  be  one  of  the  most  diligent  and 
successful  promoters  of  .  the  union  be- 
tween the  "Disciples"  and  "Christians" 
or  "Stoneites"  in  Kentucky. 

There  were  many  other  able  and  influ- 


138      The  Disciples  of  Christ 


ential  Baptist  preachers  in  Kentucky  who 
gave  themselves  to  the  dissemination  of 
Campbell  s  views,  such  as  Jeremiah  Varde- 
man,  who  was  said  to  have  baptized  more 
persons  than  any  other  preacher  in  Ken- 
tucky; Jacob  Creath,  Sr.,  who  was  pro- 
nounced by  Henry  Clay  to  be  ''the  finest 
natural  orator"  he  had  ever  heard;  J.  T. 
Johnson,  who  was  educated  for  a  lawyer, 
but  became  a  preacher,  converted  hundreds 
of  persons  in  protracted  meetings,  in  many 
of  the  central  and  southern  states,  and  was 
active  in  promoting  the  union  between  the 
followers  of  Stone  and  Campbell. 

The  most  rapid  and  sweeping  success  of 
the  new  reformation  took  place  in  the  Bap- 
tist churches  of  the  Mahoning  Association 
in  eastern  Ohio,  near  Mr.  Campbell's  home. 
From  the  time  of  the  preaching  of  the  Ser- 
mon on  the  Lazvm  18 16  before  the  Redstone 
Association,  the  enemies  of  Campbell  were 
industriously  working  against  him  and 
planning  to  oust  him  as  soon  as  they  could 


Reformers  Among  the  Baptists  139 

command  a  majority  of  the  messengers  of 
the  Association.  This  did  not  seem  immi- 
nent until  1823;  and  to  defeat  their  plans, 
Campbell  asked  for  letters  for  himself  and 
wife  and  thirty  others  from  the  Brush  Run 
church  to  form  a  new  church  in  Charles- 
town  or  Wellsburg,  as  it  began  to  be  called. 
He  had  made  the  acquaintance  of  several 
preachers  of  the  Mahoning  Association, 
who  had  frequently  urged  him  to  be  pres- 
ent at  its  meetings.  The  members  of  this 
Association  were  more  favorably  disposed 
towards  him,  were  less  rigidly  bound  by 
creeds  and  Baptist  usages,  and  gladly  wel- 
comed the  new  church  at  Wellsburg  into 
its  fellowship.  The  preachers  of  the  Asso- 
ciation who  came  under  the  influence  of 
Campbell,  were  Adamson  Bentley,  Sidney 
Rigdon,  Jacob  Osborne,  Joseph  Freeman, 
Marcus  Bosworth,  and  others.  They  had 
carried  on  the  work  of  reformation  among 
the  churches  before  Alexander  Campbell 
appeared  among  them  as  a  delegate  from 


140      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

the  Wellsburg  church  in  1825.  At  the 
meeting  of  the  Association  in  1824  the  fol- 
lowing questions  were  presented  from  the 
church  at  Nelson:  "  i.  Will  this  Associa- 
tion hold  in  its  connection  a  church  which 
acknowledges  no  other  rule  of  faith  and 
practice  than  the  Scriptures?"  "2.  In 
what  manner  were  members  received  into 
the  churches  that  were  set  in  order  by  the 
apostles?"  "3.  How  were  members  ex- 
cluded from  those  churches  ?  "  These  ques- 
tions indicate  that  the  Christian  Baptist 
had  been  circulating  among  the  churches. 
Questions  presented  from  other  churches 
bore  the  same  import.  The  church  at  Nel- 
son passed  a  resolution  in  1824,  "to  remove 
the  Philadelphia  Confession  of  Faith  and 
the  church  articles,  and  to  take  the  word  of 
God  for  their  rule  of  faith  and  practice." 
A  minority  objected  and  organized  another 
church,  and  both  churches  sent  messengers 
to  the  Association  the  next  year. 
At  the  meeting  of  the  Association  in 


Reformers  Among  the  Baptists  141 

August,  1827,  at  New  Lisbon,  Ohio,  the  fol- 
lowing petition  was  presented  from  the 
Braceville  church:  "We  wish  that  this 
Association  may  take  into  serious  consider- 
ation the  peculiar  situation  of  the  churches 
of  the  Association,  and  if  it  would  be  a  pos- 
sible thing  for  an  evangelical  preacher  to  be 
employed  to  travel  and  teach  among  the 
churches,  we  think  that  a  blessing  would 
follow."  The  suggestion  met  with  the  ap- 
proval of  the  members  and  Walter  Scott  of 
Steubenville,  Ohio,  was  appointed  as  evan- 
gelist. Alexander  Campbell  had  gone  by 
way  of  Scott's  home  and  had  brought  him 
to  the  meeting.  The  importance  of  the 
career  and  influence  of  this  man  upon  the 
character  of  the  movement  is  second  only 
to  that  of  Campbell  himself.  The  creators 
and  leaders  of  the  movement  are  usually 
listed  as  follows:  Thomas  Campbell,  Alex- 
ander Campbell,  Barton  W.  Stone,  and 
Walter  Scott.  The  latter  was  born  in  Scot- 
land in  1796;  was  educated  at  the  University 


142      The  Disciples  ot  Christ 

of  Edinburgh;  came  to  America  in  1818,  and 
settled  in  Pittsburg.  Through  the  influence 
of  a  Mr.  Forrester,  a  teacher  and  preacher, 
who  took  the  Bible  as  his  only  authority 
and  guide  in  matters  of  faith  and  practice, 
Mr.  Scott  was  led  to  study  the  Scriptures 
with  reference  to  the  subject  of  infant  bap- 
tism. He  came  to  the  conclusion  that  it 
had  no  sanction  in  the  word  of  God,  and 
that  the  immersion  of  a  believer  was  the 
true  scriptural  practice.  He  was  immersed 
and  became  associated  with  Mr.  Forrester 
in  the  work  of  teaching,  and  in  charge  of 
the  small  company  of  immersed  believers 
gathered  together  by  Mr.  Forrester.  Upon 
the  sudden  death  of  Mr.  Forrester,  he  as- 
sumed oversight  of  the  church.  His  study 
of  the  New  Testament  and  his  reading  of 
the  works  of  John  Locke,  brought  him  to 
the  conviction  that  the  central  truth  of 
Christianity  was  the  messiahship  of  Jesus, 
and  that  the  confession,  "Jesus  is  the 
Christ,"  was  the  sole  article  of  faith  in  the 


Reformers  Among  the  Baptists  143 

creed  of  the  primitive  church.  He  had 
come  to  his  religious  position  before  he  met 
Alexander  Campbell,  who  came  to  Pittsburg 
in  1821  on  a  visit  to  his  father.  This  led  to 
a  mutual  acquaintance  and  a  subsequent 
cooperation  between  the  three  men  in  the 
work  of  "reforming  the  Christian  profes- 
sion." Scott  and  Campbell  were  in  perfect 
accord  in  their  religious  principles,  and 
formed  a  personal  and  intimate  friendship 
which  lasted  through  life.  They  consulted 
together  in  the  establishment  of  the  Chris- 
tian Baptist  and  in  the  first  number  ap- 
peared an  article  by  Scott,  **0n  Teaching 
Christianity,"  in  which  he  said:  "Times 
out  of  number  we  are  told  in  Scripture  that 
the  grand  saving  truth  is  that  Jesus  is  the 
Christ.  This  is  the  bond  of  union  among 
Christians— the  essence— the  spirit  of  all 
revelation."  This  was  Scott's  contribution, 
par  excellence,  to  the  principles  of  the  new 
reformation.  The  two  men  influenced  each 
other  in  the  clearer  grasp  of  New  Testa- 


144      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

ment  teaching,  each  contributing  to  the 
other  his  body  of  newly  discovered  truth. 

It  was  this  man  who  was  chosen  in  1827 
to  go  among  the  Baptist  churches  of  the 
Mahoning  Association  to  preach  "  the  an- 
cient gospel  "and  to  restore  "the  ancient 
order  of  things."  By  this  time  he  had  fully 
settled  in  his  mind  the  "  authorized  plan  of 
teaching  the  Christian  religion,"  and  of 
bringing  men  into  the  church.  This  may 
be  said  to  have  been  a  specialty  with  him, 
and  now  he  was  to  have  his  first  great  op- 
portunity of  putting  it  into  practice.  His 
first  step  was  (i)  faith.  The  sole  aim  of 
the  preacher  should  be  to  awaken  faith  in 
the  unbeliever  towards  Jesus  as  the  Son  of 
God.  Faith  being  the  result  of  testimony, 
the  preacher  must  proclaim  the  evidences 
of  the  messiahship  as  recorded  in  the  four 
Gospels.  This  gave  him  an  opportunity  to 
contrast  the  prevailing  Calvinistic  doctrine 
of  saving  faith  with  the  new  doctrine.  In- 
stead of  pleading  with  God  to  be  merciful 


Reformers  Among  the  Baptists  I45; 

to  the  sinner  and  grant  him  saving  faith, 
the  preacher  pleaded  with  the  sinner  to  ac- 
cept the  testimony  God  had  given  of  his 
Son  in  the  Scriptures.  In  this  connection 
the  metaphysical  creeds  of  the  churches 
which  were  imposed  on  the  faith  of  men  as 
a  condition  of  peace  with  God  and  fellow- 
ship with  his  Son,  were  held  up  for  ridicule 
and  dissection,  and  were  denounced  as 
causes  of  division  and  strife  among  Chris- 
tians. This  gave  him  a  chance  to  preach 
his  doctrine  of  Christian  union  upon  the 
basis  of  primitive  Christianity.  The  next 
step  was  to  call  upon  sinners  to  (2)  repent. 
The  emphasis  was  upon  immediate  and 
voluntary  repentance,  in  contrast  with  the 
repentance  of  Calvinism  which  depended 
upon  the  disposition  and  choice  of  God. 
The  sinner  could  not  repent  until  God  chose 
to  grant  it,  or  to  intimate  the  sinner's  elec- 
tion by  some  sign.  The  next  step  was  to 
call  upon  the  sinner  to  make  a  (3)  confes- 
sion. That  confession  was  submitted  in  the 


146      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

words  of  Peter's  confession:  Do  you  be- 
lieve that  Jesus  is  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the 
living  God  ?  "  No  other  test  or  requirement 
was  exacted.  They  were  then  told  to  sub- 
mit to  the  ordinance  of  (4)  baptism.  He 
appealed  to  the  example  and  precept  of 
apostolic  conversions.  This  gave  him  an 
opportunity  to  set  forth  the  New  Testa- 
ment form  and  doctrine  of  baptism  as  he 
understood  it.  The  form  was  immersion, 
the  doctrine  was,  "for  the  remission  of 
sins."  The  great  text  was  the  instruction 
of  Peter  to  the  multitude  on  the  day  of  Pen- 
tecost. They  were  then  taught  to  expect 
(5)  S^fl  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  The  Spirit 
did  his  work  upon  the  sinner  through  the 
revealed  and  accredited  testimony,  but  after 
baptism  he  was  the  personal  guest  and  com- 
forter of  the  believer.  This  was  the  "  an- 
cient gospel,"  the  discovery  and  first  preach- 
ing of  which  are  accredited  to  Walter  Scott. 

This  was  the  substance  of  the  sermons 
Walter  Scott  preached  among  the  Baptists. 


Reformers  Among  the  Baptists  147 

To  say  that  it  thrilled  some  and  shocked 
others,  would  be  putting  it  mildly.  It  had 
never  been  heard  on  that  wise  before.  To 
the  sinner,  troubled  with  fears  and  doubts 
of  his  election,  denied  all  supernatural 
tokens  of  his  acceptance  with  God,  agoniz- 
ing in  prayer  for  saving  faith  and  the  guid- 
ing power  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  it  came  as  a 
welcome  and  peace-bringing  evangel.  To 
staid  Calvinistic  Baptists  who  had  found 
peace  and  acceptance  with  God  in  the  old 
way,  it  was  shocking.  It  was  only  after  a 
great  struggle  that  Scott  got  himself  to  the 
point  of  putting  it  in  practice.  He  believed 
it  was  done  that  way  in  apostolic  times, 
why  would  it  not  work  to-day  ?  The  first 
place  he  tried  it  was  in  the  Baptist  church 
at  New  Lisbon,  Ohio.  It  worked,  for  the 
first  person  to  respond  to  the  appeal  was 
the  most  eminent  and  influential  member  of 
the  Presbyterian  church.  This  man  had 
once  said  to  his  wife:  "When  I  find  any 
person  preaching  as  did  the  apostle  Peter  in 


148      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

the  second  chapter  of  Acts,  I  shall  offer  my- 
self for  obedience  and  go  with  him."  He 
found  that  person  in  Walter  Scott.  Within 
a  few  days  seventeen  persons  "believed 
and  were  baptized."  The  church  and  en- 
tire community  were  aroused.  He  went 
from  one  town  to  another  repeating  the 
same  message  and  meeting  with  the  same 
results.  At  the  close  of  the  first  year  of 
work  the  Association  met  at  Warren,  Ohio. 
The  result  of  his  work  was  the  conversion 
of  nearly  one  thousand  persons.  The  total 
membership  of  the  sixteen  churches  com- 
prising the  Association  the  year  before  was 
scarcely  five  hundred.  The  success  of  the 
"  ancient  gospel  "  this  first  year  under  Scott 
completely  transformed  the  Association, 
and  in  1830,  at  the  meeting  at  Austintown, 
it  was  voluntarily  dissolved  in  its  Baptist 
form  and  met  ever  after  as  a  "yearly  meet- 
ing" for  fellowship  and  acquaintance. 

Commingled  in  the  message  of  these  Re- 
formers were  a  proselytism  and  an  evangel- 


Reformers  Among  the  Baptists  149 

ism.  To  many  members  of  Baptist,  Pres- 
byterian and  Methodist  churches  it  came  as 
a  new  gospel,  and  they  were  unable  to  tell 
whether  it  was  the  correction  and  enlighten- 
ment of  their  views  of  religion,  or  the 
stirring  of  their  moral  natures,  which  won 
them.  In  the  stream  which  flowed  into 
the  rapidly  filling  ranks  of  "reforming 
churches "  were  both  sinners  and  church 
members.  The  success  was  unprecedented. 
Through  Ohio,  Pennsylvania,  Virginia,  and 
Kentucky  the  movement  spread  with  rapid- 
ity among  Baptist  churches;  while  there  are 
not  wanting  records  of  the  capture  of  entire 
Methodist  or  other  Protestant  churches,  as 
in  the  case  of  the  Methodist  church  at  Deer- 
field,  Ohio. 

The  secret  of  such  success  lay  first  of  all 
in  their  appeal  to  the  simple  teaching  of 
Scripture.  Every  one  was  able  to  open  his 
Bible  and  apply  the  motto,  "Where  the 
Scriptures  speak,  we  speak;  where  they  are 
silent,  we  are  silent."    It  was  a  democratic 


150      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

movement,  founded  upon  the  right  and  the 
ability  of  every  person  to  interpret  the 
Scriptures  for  himself,  and  upon  the  desire 
of  every  person  to  have  a  voice  in  the  man- 
agement of  his  religious  heritage.  It  may 
be  said  that  the  movement  gave  to  the  peo- 
ple in  religion  v/hat  they  had  obtained  in 
the  state,  "  a  government  of  the  people,  for 
the  people,  and  by  the  people."  They  took 
the  government  of  the  church  and  the  inter- 
pretation of  the  Scriptures  out  of  the  hands 
of  the  clergy  and  councils,  and  put  them 
into  the  hands  of  the  people.  The  destruc- 
tion of  "  the  rule  of  the  clergy  "  was  an  oft 
repeated  phrase  and  a  fixed  ideal  of  the  Re- 
formers. The  people  were  pleased  and 
followed  them. 

The  message  met  the  religious  needs  of 
the  time,  just  as  the  message  of  Lyman 
Beecher  and  Charles  G.  Finney,  and  on  the 
same  ground.  They  all  preached  the  doc- 
trine of  "free  agency  and  the  sinner's  im- 
mediate duty  to  repent."  The  background 


Reformers  Among  the  Baptists  151 

of  the  movement  was  the  dark,  benumbing 
fatalism  of  Calvinistic  theology.  But  neither 
Beecher  nor  Finney  had  grasped  the  clear 
and  simple  "  plan  of  salvation"  as  set  forth 
in  the  sermons  of  such  men  as  Barton  W. 
Stone,  Walter  Scott  and  John  Smith.  Over 
against  the  perplexing  supernaturalism  and 
mysticism  of  the  theological  preaching  of 
the  time,  was  set  the  plain  instruction  of 
those  Pentecostal  preachers — repent  and 
be  baptized  every  one  of  you  in  the  name 
of  Jesus  Christ,  unto  the  remission  of  your 
sins ;  and  ye  shall  receive  the  gift  of  the  Holy 
Spirit."  As  illustrating  the  practical  work- 
ing of  their  method,  the  following  incident 
is  told  of  John  Whitacre:  On  one  occasion 
in  a  meeting,  among  several  at  the  altar 
praying  for  divine  power  to  come  down, 
was  a  lady  of  intelligence.  "When  she 
ceased,  Whitacre  spoke  to  her:  'Madam,' 
said  he,  'what  would  you  give  for  faith  in 
Mahomet  ? '  '  Nothing,'  was  her  somewhat 
indignant  reply.    '  Why  not  ? '  he  continued. 


152      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

'Because  I  believe  him  to  be  an  impostor.' 
'  But  why  are  you  so  anxious  for  faith  in 
Jesus  Christ?'  'Because  I  believe  he  is  my 
only  Saviour.'  '  Well,'  said  Whitacre,  '  why 
are  you  praying  for  that  which  you  say  you 
have  ?  Why  not  go  forward  and  obey  the 
gospel  and  be  made  free  from  sin?'" 
Such  intelligible  instructions  to  sinners, 
perplexed  and  mystified  by  Calvinistic  teach- 
ing, came  as  lights  in  the  deepest  darkness. 
It  is  notable  that  the  great  leaders  and 
preachers  of  the  movement  came  up  under 
Presbyterianism  and  broke  with  it  either  on 
account  of  its  government  or  its  theology. 

Not  less  appealing  was  their  message  of 
unity  and  fraternity  among  warring,  com- 
peting sects.  Their  vision  of  a  united 
church  upon  the  foundation  of  the  apostles 
and  prophets,  with  Christ  himself  as  the 
chief  corner  stone,  may  have  been  Utopian, 
but  it  was  beautiful  and  alluring,  and  gave 
to  the  people,  sickened  with  the  pettiness 
of  sectarian  differences,  a  noble  ideal  to 


Reformers  Among  the  Baptists  153 

work  for.  In  spite  of  the  incongruity  of  its 
setting  many  times,  and  the  inconsistency 
of  its  advocates,  the  doctrine  of  Christian 
union  was  felt  to  be  providential. 


CHAPTER  VIII 


THE  SEPARATION  OF  THE  REFORMERS  FROM 
THE  BAPTISTS 

The  Baptists  had  many  reasons  for  hold- 
ing the  new  reformation  in  doubt.  Its 
advocates  were  often  intemperate  in  their 
use  of  language  and  inconsiderate  in  their 
use  of  means  against  what  they  believed 
were  erroneous  beliefs  and  customs  in  Bap- 
tist churches.  They  were  indifferent  to  the 
consequences  of  changes  they  were  seeking 
to  bring  about  in  the  Baptist  order.  It  was 
the  privilege  of  every  person  to  apply  the 
principle,  "Where  the  Scriptures  speak,  we 
speak;  where  they  are  silent,  we  are 
silent,"  and  many  of  the  Reformers  seemed 
to  vie  with  each  other  in  the  number  of 
novel  and  absurd  changes  they  could  intro- 
duce. 

The  principle  had  both  a  positive  and  a 
154 


The  Separation  of  the  Reformers  155 


negative  application.  It  was  with  respect 
to  the  "order  of  things"  in  the  primitive 
church  that  they  were  chiefly  concerned. 
It  was  a  simpler  task  to  put  into  practice  the 
ritual  precepts  and  examples  of  the  New 
Testament  than  its  ethical  and  spiritual  pre- 
cepts and  examples.  They  were  not  obliv- 
ious of  the  fact  that  the  New  Testament 
taught  a  "spirit  of  things"  as  well  as  an 
"order  of  things"  but  they  joined  issue 
upon  the  order.  They  found  that  the 
Scriptures  not  only  spoke  of  the  Lord's  sup- 
per as  being  celebrated  on  the  first  day  of 
the  week,  and  of  baptism  as  an  immersion 
or  burial  in  water,  and  of  deacons  and  elders 
as  constituting  the  official  organization  of 
the  local  church,  and  of  reception  of  persons 
into  the  church  upon  a  confession  of  their 
faith  and  baptism — all  of  which  they  put  into 
practice;  but  they  also  found  that  the  Scrip- 
tures spoke  of  the  holy  kiss,  of  feet  wash- 
ing, of  mutual  exhortation  in  public  meet- 
ings, of  the  "amen  "  at  the  close  of  prayer, 


156      The  Disciples  ot  Christ 

of  eating  the  Lord's  supper  in  the  evening, 
of  baptism  in  streams  of  water,  of  kneehng 
in  prayer,  of  a  community  of  goods,  of  the 
silence  of  women  in  churches — all  of  which 
were  tried  in  various  churches  in  the  begin- 
ning, but  never  with  the  approval  of  the 
leaders.  These  things  were  regarded  as 
"the  circumstantials  of  Christian  worship," 
which  should  be  treated  with  freedom  and 
forbearance.  The  Baptists,  however,  could 
not  tell  where  the  principle  would  lead 
them,  for  it  was  capable  of  endless  applica- 
tion and  experiment.  The  churches  had 
not  found  a  common  level  of  belief  and 
practice.  They  were  passing  through  the 
experimental  stage.  While  each  church 
was  perfectly  free  and  independent,  yet 
there  was  one  master  mind,  one  control- 
ling genius,  who  was  leading  them.  He 
spoke  through  the  pages  of  the  Christian 
Baptist.  The  mind  and  personality  of  Alex- 
ander Campbell  dominated  the  entire  move- 
ment.   After  he  had  spoken  there  was  no 


The  Separation  of  the  Reformers  157 

use  for  any  one  else  to  speak.  Through  his 
writings  and  suggestions  in  the  Christian 
Baptist  he  regulated  and  controlled  the  con- 
duct of  all  the  preachers  and  churches.  He 
introduced  the  widely  separated  congrega- 
tions of  Reformers  to  each  other,  and  was  the 
connecting  link  that  bound  them  together. 

But  these  Reformers  respected  the  "si- 
lence of  Scripture "  quite  as  much  as  the 
"  speech  of  Scripture."  This  plunged  them 
into  extravagances  and  extremes  in  the 
other  direction,  much  to  the  annoyance  and 
alarm  of  the  Baptists.  Where  there  was 
not  a  "Thus  saith  the  Lord" for  a  Baptist 
belief  or  usage,  there  was  ready  a  Thus 
saith  the  Reformer"  against  it,  and  the 
Scriptures  were  made  to  speak  quite  as 
loudly  against  some  things  as  for  other 
things.  One  after  another  the  cherished 
customs  and  institutions  of  the  Baptist  order 
were  swept  away,  as  having  no  sanction  in 
the  word  of  God,  and  there  was  no  telling 
what  would  go  next.    There  was  no  pre- 


158      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

cept  or  example  in  the  New  Testament  for 
the  use  of  creeds  as  bonds  of  fellowship,  or 
for  the  examination  of  converts  as  to  their 
Christian  experience,  or  for  ministerial  calls, 
clerical  authority,  associations  of  churches, 
missionary  societies,  Bible  societies,  tract 
societies  or  Sunday-schools.  Wherever  the 
new  reformation  prevailed  all  these  things 
were  done  away.  No  wonder  it  looked 
like  disorganization  and  anarchy  to  a  Baptist 
who  was  not  captivated  by  it.  What  re- 
sponse but  opposition  could  be  expected  on 
the  part  of  a  strong,  established,  and  re- 
spectable body,  such  as  the  Baptist  denomi- 
nation, to  the  inroads  of  such  lawlessness? 
Whether  in  the  majority  or  the  minority  the 
faithful  among  the  Baptists  stood  up  in  de- 
fense of  their  system.  The  leading  Baptist 
papers  of  the  country,  such  as  the  Western 
Luminary,  the  Western  Recorder,  the 
Pittsburg  Recorder,  Columbian  Star,  and 
the  New  York  Baptist  Register,  entered  the 
controversy  against  Campbell. 


The  Separation  of  the  Reformers   1 59 

The  appearance  of  his  teachings  in  local 
churches  was  the  signal  for  opposition  and 
strife  which  usually  ended  in  division. 
Such  inquiries  as  the  following  began  to 
come  from  the  churches  to  the  associations: 
**  What  must  a  church  do  with  her  preacher 
who  has  embraced  Campbellism  ? "  The  as- 
sociation replied:  "As  we  know  not  what 
Campbellism  is,  we  cannot  tell  her  what  to 
do."  There  were  many  divisions  in 
churches  between  the  Reformers  and  Bap- 
tists from  1824  to  1828;  as  at  Nelson,  Ohio, 
in  1824,  and  at  Salem,  Ohio,  in  1828;  but 
these  resulted  in  merely  local  estrangement 
between  two  parties,  each  of  which  estab- 
lished a  church  of  its  own.  Such  divisions 
were  not  long  in  finding  their  way  into 
associations.  Both  parties  usually  claimed 
to  be  the  original  Baptist  church  of  the 
place,  and  sent  messengers  to  the  associa- 
tion. The  recognition  of  one  party  or  the 
other  was  sure  to  divide  the  association.  It 
was  the  beginning  of  the  end  of  relation- 


i6o      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

ship  between  Baptists  and  Reformers  when 
associations  began  to  divide,  and  pass  reso- 
lutions against  Campbellism." 

The  first  association  to  take  definite  action 
against  the  Reformers  was  the  Redstone  of 
Pennsylvania.  A  rule  had  been  passed  by 
the  Association  requiring  the  churches  to 
mention  the  Philadelphia  Confession  in  their 
letters,  as  a  condition  of  representation  in 
its  meetings.  In  1825  several  churches 
failed  to  mention  the  Confession  and  their 
messengers  were  denied  a  seat.  In  1826,  by 
a  reduction  of  representation  in  the  Associa- 
tion, the  opponents  of  the  Reformers  or- 
ganized it  out  of  ten  churches  and  cut  off 
thirteen  other  churches.  These  churches  cut 
off  from  the  Association  met  in  November 
the  same  year  and  organized  a  new  associa- 
tion under  the  name,  "The  Washington 
Association."  This  action  was  followed  by 
the  Beaver  Association  of  Pennsylvania  in 
1829,  and  in  a  series  of  resolutions  it  disfel- 
lowshipped  the  Mahoning  Association  of 


The  Separation  of  the  Reformers  i6i 

Ohio,  for  "disbelieving  and  denying  many 
of  the  doctrines  of  the  Holy  Scriptures." 
This  Association  had  come  completely  under 
the  influence  of  Mr.  Campbell  and  was  go- 
ing on  under  the  leadership  of  Walter  Scott, 
triumphantly  "restoring  the  ancient  order 
of  things."  The  Beaver  resolutions  were  as 
follows: 

"  I.  They,  the  Reformers,  maintain  that 
there  is  no  promise  of  salvation  without 
baptism. 

"2.  That  baptism  should  be  adminis- 
tered to  all  who  say  they  believe  that  Jesus 
Christ  is  the  Son  of  God,  without  examina- 
tion on  any  other  point. 

"3.  That  there  is  no  direct  operation  of 
the  Holy  Spirit  on  the  mind  prior  to  baptism. 

"4.  That  baptism  procures  the  remis- 
sion of  sins  and  the  gift  of  the  Holy  Spirit. 

"5.  That  the  Scriptures  are  the  only 
evidence  of  interest  in  Christ. 

"6.  That  obedience  places  it  in  God's 
power  to  elect  to  salvation. 


l62      The  Disciples  of  Christ 


"7.  That  no  creed  is  necessary  for  the 
church  but  the  Scriptures  as  they  stand. 
And 

"8.  That  all  baptized  persons  have  the 
right  to  administer  the  ordinance  of  bap- 
tism." 

These  resolutions  were  scattered  widely 
among  other  Baptist  associations,  and  their 
boldness  gave  courage  to  many  who  had 
been  waiting  for  the  signal  of  attack.  The 
Franklin  Association  of  Kentucky  passed 
them  without  change  and  warned  all  the 
churches  against  the  errors  of  the  Mahon- 
ing Association.  In  June,  1830.  Tate's 
Creek  Association  excluded  the  Reformers, 
passed  the  Beaver  resolutions,  and  added 
four  more  as  follows:  ' 

"().  That  there  is  no  special  call  to  the 
ministry. 

"  10.  That  the  law  given  by  God  to 
Moses  is  abolished. 

"II.  That  experimental  religion  is  en- 
thusiasm. And 


The  Separation  of  the  Reformers  163 

"  12.  That  there  is  no  mystery  in  the 
Scriptures." 

They  named  six  preachers  in  the  Associa- 
tion who  were  accused  of  these  heresies,  by 
which,  they  said,  "We  have  seen  associa- 
tions thrown  into  commotion,  churches 
divided,  neighbor  made  to  speak  evil  of 
neighbor,  brother  arrayed  against  brother, 
the  father  against  the  son,  and  the  daughter 
against  the  mother."  This  action  was  taken 
by  ten  out  of  the  twenty-six  churches  com- 
posing the  Association,  the  other  sixteen 
having  introduced  the  reformation.  Nearly 
all  the  associations  of  Kentucky  took  some 
action  with  reference  to  Campbellism " 
before  the  close  of  1830,  so  that  the  line 
was  pretty  sharply  drawn  between  Bap- 
tists and  Reformers.  This  was  true  of 
Elkhorn,  Bracken,  Boone's  Creek,  North 
District,  Union,  Campbell  County,  Russell 
Creek,  South  Concord,  and  others. 

The  action  against  the  Reformers  spread 
to  Virginia  and  was  led  there  by  two  of  the 


164      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

most  eminent  Baptists  of  the  time,  Robert 
Semple  and  Andrew  Broaddus.  After 
passing  the  resolutions  of  the  Beaver  Asso- 
ciation, the  Appomattox  Association  at  its 
meeting  in  1830,  passed  the  following 
recommendations: 

"  I.  Resolved,  that  it  be  recommended 
to  all  the  churches  composing  this  Associa- 
tion, to  discountenance  the  writings  of 
Alexander  Campbell. 

"2.  Resolved,  etc.,  not  to  countenance 
the  new  translation  of  the  New  Testament. 

"3.  Resolved,  etc.,  not  to  invite  into 
their  pulpit  any  minister  who  holds  the 
sentiments  in  the  Beaver  anathema." 

The  most  significant  and  influential  action 
was  taken  by  the  Dover  Association  which 
included  in  its  membership  the  churches  of 
Richmond  and  vicinity,  and  such  men  as 
Semple  and  Broaddus.  A  very  long  list  of 
the  errors  and  heresies  of  Campbell  was 
drawn  up  and  passed  by  the  Association  in 
December,  1830.    It  was  called  out  of  the 


The  Separation  of  the  Reformers  165 

regular  time,  the  Reformers  being  omitted, 
for  the  purpose  of  initiating  some  action 
against  persons  in  the  Association  who 
were  preaching  "  Campbellism."  After 
passing  the  Association  the  resolutions  were 
referred  to  the  churches.  When  they  came 
before  Semple's  church  they  were  defeated, 
though  both  Semple  and  Broaddus  were 
present.  In  1832  the  Association  withdrew 
fellowship  from  six  ministers  who  had 
•'adopted  the  name  of  Reformers." 

The  darkness  of  the  time  for  Baptist 
churches  in  the  regions  touched  by  the 
propaganda  was  voiced  in  many  sets  of 
resolutions  and  gloomy  reports.  The 
Dover  Association  at  the  close  of  its  resolu- 
tions recommended  to  the  churches  "the 
observation  of  a  day  of  solemn  humiliation, 
with  fasting  and  prayer,  with  reference  to 
the  state  of  religion,  and  the  distress  which 
had  given  rise  to  the  meeting."  The  circu- 
lar letter  of  the  Bracken  Association  in  Ken- 
tucky in  1830,  begins  as  follows:  "Dear 


l66      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

Brethren: — In  addressing  you  at  this  time, 
we  lament  to  have  to  say  that  a  dark  and 
gloomy  cloud  overspreads  our  horizon  un- 
equalled since  the  establishment  of  the  Bap- 
tist society  in  Kentucky.  Associations  and 
churches  are  dividing  and  of  course  peace 
and  harmony  have  departed."  A  very 
comprehensive  account  of  the  state  of  af- 
fairs in  Tennessee,  from  the  pen  of  Mr. 
McConnico,  appeared  in  1830.  It  reads  as 
follows:  "My  beloved  brethren: — Camp- 
bellism  has  carried  away  many  whom  I 
thought  firm.  These  wandering  stars  and 
clouds  without  water  ever  learning  and 
never  able  to  come  to  the  knowledge  of  the 
truth,  make  proselytes  much  more  the  chil- 
dren of  the  devil  than  they  were  before. 
O  Lord!  hear  the  cries  and  see  the  tears  of 
the  Baptists;  for  Alexander  hath  done  them 
much  harm.  The  Lord  reward  him  ac- 
cording to  his  works.  Look  at  the  Creaths 
of  Kentucky.  Look  at  Anderson,  Craig, 
and  Hopwood,  of  Tennessee.    See  them 


The  Separation  of  the  Reformers  167 

dividing  churches  and  spreading  discord, 
and  constituting  churches  out  of  excom- 
municated members.  Such  shuffling — such 
lying — such  slandering — such  evil  speaking 
— such  dissembling — such  downright  hy- 
pocrisy— and  all  under  the  false  name  of 
reformation."  "  They  have  made  divisions 
in  Cool  Spring  church."  **The  Association 
pronounced  the  old  party  the  church,  and 
excluded  Anderson,  Craig,  and  all  who  had 
gone  off  with  them."  "These  were  a 
large  minority — they  say  the  majority." 
"  At  Lepres  Fork  church  a  small  party  have 
gone  over  to  Campbellism."  **At  Big 
Harpeth  church,  where  I  lived  and  served 
thirty-two  years,  ten  or  twelve  members 
have  left  us."  "At  Nashville,  P.  S.  Fall, 
native  of  England,  and  Campbell's  best 
friend,  has  led  off  most  of  that  church 
which  was  a  member  of  Cumberland  Asso- 
ciation." "On  Saturday  before  the  first 
Lord's  day  in  September,  Willis  Hopwood, 
as  is  expected,  will  be  excluded  and  per- 


l68      The  Disciples  of  Christ 


haps  most  of  Liberty  church  will  follow 
him."  "Robertson's  Fork  church,  Giles 
county,  will  divide,  and  probably  a  number 
will  follow  Hopwood."  "  Zion  church, 
Bedford  County,  I  fear,  will  suffer  much 
from  the  same  new  ancient  gospel." 
"Other  churches  may  have  some  partial 
sifting."  "The  calf,  too,  is  set  up  in  Ala- 
bama." 

A  similar  account  could  be  written  of  the 
majority  of  Baptist  churches  in  Western 
Pennsylvania,  Ohio,  Kentucky,  and  Vir- 
ginia. Very  few  escaped  the  influences  of 
the  reformation  in  these  districts.  As  soon 
as  the  Baptists  had  made  up  their  minds  that 
no  good  would  come  to  their  order  from 
the  toleration  of  this  new  system,  that  it 
meant  the  overturning  of  customs  and  be- 
liefs which  had  made  them  what  they  were, 
a  definite  policy  of  resistance  towards  the 
Reformers  was  adopted.  They  were  given 
no  choice  between  rejection  of  "  Campbell- 
ism  "  and  separation  from  their  Baptist 


The  Separation  of  the  Reformers  169 

brethren.  The  reformation  took  them  by 
surprise  at  first.  There  were  many  unmis- 
takably true  things  in  it,  and  if  it  could  only 
be  restrained  within  proper  bounds,  the 
Baptists  thought  they  could  tolerate  it.  But 
under  success  the  Reformers  grew  bold  and 
confident,  and  under  restraint  they  grew 
defiant.  They  felt  that  they  had  the  truth 
and  that  the  Baptists  needed  it;  and  like  a 
child  refusing  bitter  medicine  for  its  malady, 
so  the  Baptists  were  resisting  the  truth  of 
the  Reformers — the  less  they  liked  it,  the 
more  they  needed  it. 

At  the  bottom  of  the  conflict  lay  two 
classes  of  differences,  doctrinal  and  prac- 
tical. The  doctrinal  differences  consisted  of 
disagreement  as  to  (i)  the  relative  authority 
of  the  Old  Covenant  and  the  New.  Camp- 
bell denied  that  the  Old  had  any  binding 
obligation  on  the  Christian.  Its  abroga- 
tion seemed  to  the  Baptist  a  form  of  anti- 
nomianism,  if  not  irreverence.  They  dif- 
fered in  their  (2)  doctrine  of  baptism. 


lyo      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

Campbell  taught  that  baptism  was  in  some 
way  connected  with  the  remission  of  sins; 
and  that  as  far  as  he  could  understand  New 
Testament  teaching  and  apostolic  practice, 
baptism  should  precede  entrance  into  the 
church  or  the  fellowship  of  Christian  peo- 
ple. He  did  not  give  baptism  alone  regen- 
erating efficacy,  but  in  connection  with 
faith  and  repentance,  it  constituted  the  proc- 
ess of  regeneration  or  conversion.  To  the 
Baptists  this  view  made  too  much  of  bap- 
tism and  constituted  it  a  direct  means  of 
salvation.  In  practice  both  Baptists  and  Re- 
formers insisted  upon  it,  but  in  theory  they 
held  it  differently.  They  also  differed  in 
their  view  of  (3)  the  operation  of  the  Holy 
Spirit  in  conversion.  Campbell  taught  that 
he  operated  on  the  sinner  indirectly  through 
the  Word  of  God,  the  testimony  of  the 
Spirit;  the  Baptists  believed  that  he  operated 
directly  upon  the  sinner,  through  a  direct, 
physical  impact  upon  his  heart  and  con- 
science while  he  was  still  dead  in  trespasses 


The  Separation  of  the  Reformers  171 

and  in  sins.  Both  held  that  the  Spirit  dwelt 
in  the  heart  of  the  believer  as  his  personal 
guide  and  comforter.  They  differed  as  to 
his  method  in  constituting  one  a  believer. 
The  Baptists  taught  that  the  sinner  had  need 
of  the  Spirit  in  producing  faith  and  quicken- 
ing the  spiritual  life,  while  the  Reformers 
taught  that  faith  was  a  faculty  already 
possessed  by  the  human  mind,  and  was 
awakened  towards  Jesus  Christ  by  the  sub- 
mission of  testimony  to  his  messiahship  out 
of  the  Scriptures. 

They  differed  also  in  many  practices.  As 
to  the  (i)  value  and  use  of  creeds.  The 
Reformers  believed  that  they  were  both  un- 
necessary and  unscriptural,  and  the  cause 
of  strife  and  division  among  Christians. 
The  Baptists  used  them  and  believed  that 
they  were  necessary  to  keep  error  out  of 
the  church  and  as  convenient  summaries  of 
the  essential  doctrines  of  the  Christian  faith. 
They  differed  in  the  (2)  method  of  receiving 
persons  into  the  church.    The  Reformers 


172      The  Disciples  of  Christ 


baptized  a  person  upon  the  confession  of 
his  faith  in  the  messiahship  of  Jesus,  and 
received  him  without  further  test  into  the 
church.  The  Baptists  required  an  examina- 
tion of  the  person  before  the  officers  or  the 
entire  church,  the  relation  of  an  experience 
which  should  be  acceptible  as  evidence  of  a 
change  of  heart,  and  by  vote  of  the  congre- 
gation admitted  him  to  baptism.  The  Re- 
former's haste  seemed  loose  and  dangerous 
to  the  Baptists,  who  by  inheritance  from 
the  past  were  careful  to  guard  the  church 
from  unregenerate  persons.  They  differed 
in  the  (3)  administration  of  baptism.  The 
Reformers  held  that  baptism  could  be 
validly  administered  by  any  believing  Chris- 
tian; the  Baptists  required  the  offices  of  an 
ordained  minister.  In  (4)  the  observance  of 
the  Lord's  supper,  the  Reformers  celebrated 
it  every  Sunday,  the  Baptists  only  monthly 
or  quarterly.  The  Reformers  held  that,  in 
(5)  the  call  to  the  ministry,  the  fitness  of  the 
person,  both  morally  and  intellectually,  con- 


The  Separation  of  the  Reformers  173 

stituted  the  call;  while  the  Baptists  insisted 
upon  a  supernatural  summons  attested  by 
some  spiritual  or  physical  sign.  Other  dif- 
ferences existed,  but  these  are  the  ones  that 
were  the  chief  causes  of  conflict,  and  made 
their  appearance  the  most  frequently. 

In  spite  of  the  differences  with  the  Bap- 
tists the  Reformers  were  determined  to  stay 
with  them,  partly  because  of  old  associa- 
tions, and  partly  because  they  were  con- 
scientiously opposed  to  divisions.  Alexan- 
der Campbell  had  said  in  1826:  I  and  the 
church  with  which  I  am  connected  are  in 
full  communion  with  the  Mahoning  Baptist 
Association  of  Ohio;  and  through  them 
with  the  whole  Baptist  society  in  the  United 
States;  and  I  do  intend  to  continue  in  con- 
nection with  this  people  so  long  as  they 
will  permit  me  to  say  what  I  believe,  to 
teach  what  1  am  assured  of,  and  to  censure 
what  is  amiss  in  their  views  and  practices. 
I  have  no  idea  of  adding  to  the  catalogue  of 
new  sects.    This  game  has  been  played  too 


174      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

long."  He  looked  upon  separation  from 
the  Baptists  as  equivalent  to  the  formation 
of  a  new  sect.  A  Baptist  said  to  John 
Smith:  "Why  is  it  that  you  Reformers  do 
not  leave  us  ?  Go  off  quietly  now  and  let 
us  alone."  "We  love  you  too  well  for 
that, "  replied  Smith.  * '  My  brother  Jonathan 
once  tried  to  swap  horses  with  an  Irishman, 
but  put,  perhaps,  too  great  a  price  on  his 
horse.  The  Irishman  declined  to  trade,  and 
by  way  of  apology  said:  'It  would  be  a 
great  pity,  Mr.  Smith,  to  part  you  and  your 
horse,  for  you  do  seem  to  think  so  very 
much  of  him.'  So  we  feel  towards  you 
Baptist  brethren."  Each  party  accused  the 
other  of  being  the  cause  of  the  divisions 
and  distresses,  but  each  felt  justified  in 
maintaining  its  position  against  the  other 
unchanged.  The  Baptists  were  sure  that 
so  old,  well  tried,  and  successful  a  system 
as  theirs,  could  not  be  far  wrong;  while 
the  Reformers  were  sure  that  their  system 
was  just  a  little  older,  for  it  went  back  to 


The  Separation  of  the  Reformers  175 

the  very  beginning,  and  "  started  where  the 
apostles  left  off."  To  the  degree  that  the 
Reformers  urged  the  Baptists  to  give  up 
their  creeds,  their  doctrines,  and  human  in- 
ventions, to  that  degree  they  held  on  to 
them  and  discovered  new  reasons  for  hold- 
ing on.  In  this  controversy  as  in  most 
controversies,  where  there  is  truth  and 
honesty  on  both  sides,  and  error  and  preju- 
dice on  both  sides,  it  is  difficult,  if  not  im- 
possible, to  say  which  side  should  surrender. 
In  this,  as  always,  it  was  fought  out  to  the 
bitter  end.  Since  that  time  the  Baptists 
have  given  up  their  creeds,  have  modified 
their  Calvinism,  their  requirements  of  an 
examination  and  experience  for  member- 
ship in  the  church,  and  have  reduced  the 
authority  of  associations;  while  the  Re- 
formers as  "Disciples  of  Christ"  have  given 
up  their  opposition  to  missionary,  Bible, 
and  tract  societies,  salaried  clergy,  associa- 
tion of  churches,  have  recoiled  from  the 
literalism  of  the  authority  of  primitive  pre- 


176      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

cept  and  example,  and  above  all  have 
sweetened  in  spirit  towards  those  that  differ 
from  them.  Such  modifications  and  mod- 
erations did  not  seem  possible  to  the  parties 
in  the  midst  of  the  conflict. 


CHAPTER  IX 


THE  UNION  OF  REFORMERS  AS  DISCIPLES  OF  CHRIST 

It  is  apparent  by  the  year  1830  that  a  new 
period  has  dawned  in  the  movement  for 
the  union  of  all  Christians  by  the  restora- 
tion of  primitive  Christianity.  The  Baptists 
have  declined  to  lend  their  organization  to 
the  purposes  of  the  **  Restorationers  "  and 
have  thrust  them  out  into  a  separate 
existence.  There  are  scattered  through 
Ohio,  Pennsylvania,  Kentucky,  and  Virginia, 
larger  or  smaller  groups  of  persons  called 
"Reformers"  or  nicknamed  "Campbell- 
ites,"  composing  a  religious  community  of 
twenty  or  thirty  thousand. 

It  must  not  be  forgotten  that  the  move- 
ment was  for  the  most  part  a  propaganda 
among  Baptist  churches  from  1 813  to  1830. 
We  shall  look  in  vain  for  any  wide  diffu- 
sion of  the  "ancient  order  of  things,"  out- 
177 


ijS      The  Disciples  of  Christ 


side  of  Baptist  churches  or  in  regions  not 
covered  by  them.  The  movement  travelled 
most  rapidly  over  the  way  prepared  for  it 
by  the  diffusion  of  Baptist  principles  and 
societies.  The  people  who  became  Re- 
formers were  first  of  all  Baptists.  The 
separation  was  against  their  choice  and 
seemed  without  reason  when  they  agreed 
with  their  Baptist  brethren  in  the  majority 
of  fundamental  Christian  doctrines,  such  as 
the  authority  of  Scripture,  the  divinity  of 
Christ,  justification  by  faith,  the  atonement, 
and  the  forgiveness  of  sins.  It  was  impos- 
sible for  them  entirely  to  shake  off  their 
Baptist  proclivities  and  inheritances,  or  to 
cut  all  the  ligaments  which  bound  the  new 
body  to  its  mother.  The  mother  could 
not  disown  the  child,  and  the  child  could 
not  deny  the  mother,  so  striking  were 
the  resemblances  between  them.  Many 
churches  of  Reformers  were  separated 
with  the  expectation  of  continuing  as 
Baptist  churches.    They  could  scarcely  be- 


The  Union  of  Reformers  179 

lieve  that  it  was  the  end  of  fellowship  with 
the  Baptists  until  the  crisis  came  in  a 
general  separation  in  1829-30.  Cut  off  in 
one  place,  they  entered  into  fellowship 
with  Baptists  in  another  and  felt  them- 
selves in  the  larger  fellowship  of  the  en- 
tire body.  It  was  some  time  before  and 
only  by  degrees  that  the  Baptists  convinced 
the  Reformers  that  they  would  have  to  go 
alone.  In  some  places  Baptist  churches 
admitted  Reforming  preachers  to  their  pul- 
pits, while  in  other  places  they  were  de- 
barred. By  1832  the  Reforming  element 
was  practically  eliminated  from  the  Baptist 
churches,  and  wherever  their  preachers 
went  they  were  obliged  to  seek  a  new 
opening  and  to  establish  a  new  society, 
if  their  converts  desired  Christian  fellow- 
ship. Hitherto  the  Baptist  churches  had 
profited  by  the  recruits  of  Reforming 
preachers. 

That  the  process  of  separation  was  not  a 
painless  one  is  evidenced  by  the  violent 


l8o      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

closing  of  church  doors  against  Reforming 
preachers,  the  many  estrangements  between 
lifelong  friends,  and  the  many  legal  con- 
tests over  the  ownership  of  church  prop- 
erty. Very  often  the  property  of  a  Bap- 
tist church  passed  over  to  the  Reformers 
without  contest,  as  at  Warren  and  Hub- 
bard, Ohio.  But  besides  these  various 
material  inheritances,  the  Reformers  took 
with  them  the  remnants  and  forms  of  Bap- 
tist organization.  In  this  way  they  got 
their  start  in  the  new  world  into  which 
they  were  thrust.  Fragments  of  local 
churches  that  were  cut  off,  simply  changed 
their  places  of  meeting  and  went  on.  The 
same  was  true  of  associations.  When  the 
Mahoning  Association  of  Ohio  was  dis- 
solved in  1830,  though  Alexander  Camp- 
bell was  present  and  used  his  influence 
against  the  action,  yet  he  could  not  stem 
the  tide  that  was  setting  against  all  forms 
of  institutional  authority  or  control  in  re- 
ligious matters,  and  he  reluctantly  consented 


The  Union  of  Reformers  181 

to  its  transformation  into  a  "Yearly  Meet- 
ing "  for  edification  and  mutual  acquaint- 
ance. When  the  Reforming  churches  of 
North  District  were  disfellowshipped  in 
1829,  they  met  under  their  Baptist  constitu- 
tion in  1830,  and  again  in  1831 ;  but  at  the 
last  meeting  the  Association  was  dissolved 
to  meet  at  Sharpsburg  the  following  year, 
"and  there  communicate  with  one  another, 
either  by  letter  or  otherwise,  information 
respecting  the  progress  and  affairs  of  each 
church." 

The  Reformers  of  different  neighboring 
Baptist  associations,  conscious  of  their  sym- 
pathy with  each  other,  began  to  hold  sepa- 
rate meetings,  from  which  were  omitted 
those  known  to  be  out  of  sympathy 
with  them.  Such  a  meeting  was  held  at 
Mount  Zion,  Clark  County,  Kentucky,  in 
October,  1829.  In  1830  a  notice  was  sent 
out  calling  a  meeting  of  those  friendly  to 
the  reformation,  under  the  name  of  "Bap- 
tist Reformers,"  to  be  held  at  Mayslick, 


i82      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

Kentucky.  This  meeting  was  attended  by 
Campbell.  Such  meetings  grew  more  com- 
mon after  1830,  and  were  the  earliest  form 
of  association  of  Reformers.  Every  ele- 
ment of  authority  or  control  over  either 
persons  or  churches  was  eliminated  from 
them,  and  they  amounted  to  little  more 
than  meetings  for  worship,  instruction,  and 
acquaintance.  Since  nothing  was  under- 
taken by  them  in  the  way  of  missionary 
or  evangelistic  work,  it  was  inevitable 
that  people  would  lose  interest  in  them, 
until  they  passed  away,  to  be  succeeded 
later,  in  the  period  of  organized  missionary 
effort,  by  the  "  convention  "  system.  Camp- 
bell deprecated  the  loss  of  cooperation  and 
urged  some  form  of  organization  to  take 
the  place  of  the  old  Baptist  associations. 
The  Reformers  were  indifferent  to  it,  or 
were  occupied  in  the  work  of  propa- 
gandism,  to  the  exclusion  of  every  other 
interest.  The  thing  that  bound  them  to- 
gether was  the  common  devotion  to  the 


The  Union  ot  Reformers  183 

restoration  of  the  "ancient  order"  and  the 
proclamation  of  the  "ancient  gospel." 
Every  preacher  was  a  missionary  of  this 
new  crusade. 

The  Reformers  were  now  confronted  by 
all  the  difficulties  and  problems  that  lay  be- 
fore the  setting  up  of  independent  eccle- 
siastical housekeeping.  They  had  nobody 
to  please  but  themselves,  and  they  alone 
were  responsible  for  failures  or  successes. 
That  a  new  era  had  dawned  was  apparent 
to  Alexander  Campbell.  He  recognized 
that  his  teaching  had  created  a  party,  which 
had  begun  to  be  designated  by  various  dis- 
tinguishing names,  as  "  Reformers,"  "  Res- 
torationers,"  "  Campbellites,"  and  "Chris- 
tian Baptists";  and  for  fear  that  the  last 
name  might  cling  to  them,  he  decided  to 
terminate  the  publication  of  the  Christian 
Baptist  in  1830.  It  was  to  be  succeeded  by 
a  publication  with  a  broader  scope  and  a 
different  spirit,  and  was  to  be  called  the 
Millennial  Harbinger.    He  felt  that  the 


184      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

Christian  Baptist  had  served  the  purpose 
for  which  it  was  established,  but  that  new 
conditions  had  arisen  which  called  for  an- 
other method.  He  regretted  many  things 
that  had  appeared  in  the  Baptist,  on  account 
of  their  harshness  and  severity,  but  he  felt 
that  "desperate  diseases  require  desperate 
remedies."  He  began  to  caution  writers 
for  the  Harbinger  to  preserve  a  spirit  of 
mildness  and  meekness  and  went  so  far  as 
to  decline  to  publish  some  articles  sent  in 
by  Reformers  because  "they  were  at  least 
seven  years  after  date,"  and  admonished 
them  "to  reform  as  the  reformation  pro- 
gresses; and  if  there  be  any  flagellating  or 
scalping  to  do,  let  it  be  reserved  for  capital 
offenses."  There  was  present  in  the  first 
articles  of  the  new  periodical  the  conscious- 
ness of  a  new  task  with  new  duties  and  re- 
sponsibilities. It  was  no  longer  the  task  of 
destroying  the  old  and  uprooting  the  false, 
but  of  establishing  the  new,  of  guiding  and 
developing  an  unorganized  community  into 


The  Union  of  Reformers  185 

cooperation  for  service.  The  Harbinger 
became  the  agency  for  its  welding  together. 

One  of  the  first  problems  to  concern  them 
was  the  name  they  should  wear.  The 
question  had  been  discussed  from  the  early 
days  of  the  Christian  Baptist.  The  choice 
lay  between  two  New  Testament  designa- 
tions for  the  people  of  God,  "Christians" 
and  "Disciples  of  Christ."  The  former 
name  had  been  taken  by  the  followers  of 
Stone,  and  was  thought  by  Campbell  to 
have  become  a  sectarian  badge  because  of 
the  heretical  teachings  attributed  to  them. 
For  this  reason  he  preferred  the  name  Dis- 
ciples of  Christ,  as  one  that  could  be  worn 
by  all  Christians,  without  carrying  with  it 
any  sectarian  distinction  or  assumption  of 
superiority.  Both  names  came  into  use  by 
the  Reformers,  the  name  Christian  prefer- 
ably by  those  who  came  under  the  influence 
of  Stone,  and  the  name  Disciple  of  Christ 
by  Alexander  Campbell  and  those  who  came 
under  his  influence.    As  a  matter  of  course 


i86      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

they  came  to  repudiate  the  name  Reforming 
Baptists,  or  Campbellites,  or  Restorationers, 
and  every  other  name  without  New  Testa- 
ment sanction.  A  part  of  their  testimony 
against  other  religious  bodies  was  their  use 
of  names  to  distinguish  them  as  followers 
of  great  theological  teachers  or  party  lead- 
ers, such  as  Lutheran  or  Wesleyan;  or  to 
call  attention  to  some  peculiarity  of  faith  or 
practice,  such  as  Methodist,  Presbyterian, 
or  Baptist.  They  opposed  them  on  the 
ground  that  they  were  both  unscriptural, 
unnecessary,  and  divisive  in  their  tenden- 
cies. 

The  question  of  supply  of  ministers  for 
the  new  churches  created  by  the  separation 
from  the  Baptists,  seems  to  have  solved 
itself,  as  no  measure  was  adopted  to  enlist 
men  in  the  service  of  the  Reformers. 
Enough  preachers  from  the  Baptists  and 
other  religious  bodies  joined  the  Reformers 
to  provide  for  the  pastoral  needs  of  the  new 
congregations.    Very  few  of  them  had  set- 


The  Union  of  Reformers  187 

tied  pastors.  The  missionary  spirit  of  the 
preachers  and  the  evangelistic  cast  of  their 
preaching,  as  well  as  the  smallness  of  the 
congiegations,  made  them  by  choice  and 
necessity  itinerant  preachers.  With  such 
low  requirements  for  entrance  upon  the 
ministry,  and  with  such  a  simple,  clear-cut 
message  to  proclaim,  it  was  not  difficult  to 
enlist  or  find  men  of  sufficient  preparation 
to  go  out  and  win  converts.  Learning  was 
held  in  low  esteem  and  was  not  considered 
necessary  for  the  exposition  of  the  Bible, 
the  preacher's  text-book,  which  was 
capable  of  neither  a  double  nor  a  doubtful 
meaning  in  its  vital  parts.  Most  of  the 
communities  into  which  the  preachers  went 
did  not  require  a  high  degree  of  learning. 
Piety,  mother-wit,  and  a  ready  tongue  were 
far  more  important  than  the  contributions 
of  the  schools.  The  first  school  that  was 
established  to  supply  a  ministry  for  the 
Disciples  was  not  opened  until  1840.  It 
was  founded  by  Alexander  Campbell  and 


i88      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

called  "Bethany  College."  Without  prep- 
aration of  any  sort,  from  the  farm  and  the 
shop,  scores  of  young  men  went  out  to 
preach  the  "ancient  gospel."  Among  such 
were  John  Henry,  who  was  born  in  1797, 
and  died  in  1844.  He  learned  to  play  on 
nine  kinds  of  instruments  in  his  youth,  was 
brought  into  the  church  by  Adamson  Bent- 
ley  at  thirty  years  of  age,  started  out  to 
preach  from  the  farm  where  he  had  spent 
most  of  his  life,  and  became  one  of  the 
most  powerful  and  eloquent  masters  of  re- 
ligious assemblies  among  the  Disciples.  He 
and  Alexander  Campbell  were  to  speak  at 
the  same  meeting.  He  spoke  first  and 
many  who  did  not  know  either  of  the 
speakers  supposed  it  was  Campbell.  After 
Campbell  had  spoken  some  time  at  the  close 
of  Henry's  sermon  many  of  the  hearers 
said:  "We  wish  that  man  would  sit  down 
and  let  Campbell  get  up,  for  he  knows  how 
to  preach."  His  ministry  was  spent  chiefly 
in  Ohio.    Another  Ohio  man  was  William 


The  Union  of  Reformers  189 

Hayden,  who  was  born  in  1799  and  died  in 
1863.  He  was  without  education,  became 
a  Baptist,  passed  from  the  farm  to  the  pul- 
pit, and  of  him  Walter  Scott  said  to  the 
Mahoning  Association  in  1828:  "Brethren, 
give  me  my  Bible,  my  head  and  William 
Hayden,  and  we  will  go  out  and  convert 
the  world."  He  became  singing  evangelist 
to  Scott  "and  during  a  ministry  of  thirty- 
five  years  he  travelled  ninety  thousand 
miles,  fully  sixty  thousand  of  which  he 
made  on  horseback.  .  .  .  The  baptisms 
by  his  own  hands  were  twelve  hundred  and 
seven.  He  preached  over  nine  thousand 
sermons."  There  were  many  other  preach- 
ers of  lesser  talent  and  influence  whose  edu- 
cational opportunities  were  as  limited  as 
those  of  Henry  and  Hayden. 

Of  a  somewhat  different  type  was  David 
S.  Burnet,  who  was  born  at  Dayton,  Ohio, 
in  1808,  and  died  in  Baltimore,  Maryland,  in 
1867.  His  father  was  a  lawyer  and  for 
twelve  years  mayor  of  Cincinnati,  Ohio. 


190      The  Disciples  ot  Christ 

He  was  brought  up  as  a  Presbyterian,  but  at 
sixteen  years  of  age,  after  careful  study  of 
the  New  Testament,  was  baptized  into  the 
Baptist  church.  He  began  preaching  at 
once,  and  at  twenty  years  of  age  became 
pastor  of  the  Baptist  church  at  Dayton,  Ohio. 
He  began  to  read  the  writings  of  Campbell 
and  at  the  time  of  the  separation  of  Baptists 
and  Reformers  he  went  with  the  latter. 
His  activities  were  various.  He  was 
preacher,  pastor  and  college  president, 
editor  and  author,  and  in  every  capacity  he 
excelled.  If  in  any  particular  he  excelled 
more  than  another  it  was  as  a  speaker.  He 
was  a  pulpit  orator  of  no  mean  ability  and 
occupied  the  most  responsible  positions  and 
was  held  in  the  highest  esteem  among  the 
Disciples. 

The  most  significant  event  in  the  develop- 
ment of  the  body  of  Reformers,  following 
close  upon  the  heels  of  their  separation 
from  the  Baptists,  was  the  union  of  the  Re- 
formers and  the  Christians,  the  followers  of 


The  Union  of  Reformers  191 

B.  W.  Stone.  We  have  traced  the  process 
by  which  Stone  broke  with  the  Presbyte- 
rians in  1803,  followed  by  the  organization, 
and  within  a  year,  the  dissolution  of  the 
Springfield  Presbytery,  with  the  abandon- 
ment of  creeds,  human  organizations  and 
names;  by  which  he  made  converts  to  his 
plan  of  Christian  union  upon  the  Bible  alone, 
and  organized  churches  in  Ohio  and  Ken- 
tucky under  the  name  Christians.  The  Re- 
formers among  the  Baptists  and  these  Chris- 
tians were  continually  meeting  upon  the 
same  field  of  labor  from  1826,  and  upon 
discovery  of  agreement  in  many  principles 
and  practices,  began  to  fraternize. 

There  were  present  at  the  meeting  of  the 
Mahoning  Association  at  New  Lisbon,  Ohio, 
in  1827,  three  Christian  preachers,  J.  Merrill, 
John  Secrest,  and  Joseph  Gaston,  who  were 
invited  to  have  a  seat  in  the  Association. 
They  had  come  up  from  Kentucky  and 
were  preaching  the  doctrines  of  Stone 
everywhere  through  Ohio.    Secrest,  the 


192      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

most  able  and  influential  of  the  Christian 
preachers  in  Ohio,  after  visiting  Alexander 
Campbell  at  his  home,  came  away  convinced 
that  "he  was  a  man  of  great  talent,  a 
scholar,  and  forty  years  ahead  of  this  gener- 
ation; and  that  if  he  carries  the  thing 
through  as  he  has  commenced,  he  will 
revolutionize  the  whole  Protestant  world, 
for  his  foundation  can  never  be  shaken." 

There  was  one  difference  in  teaching  and 
practice  between  the  Reformers  and  these 
"New  Lights"  and  that  was  as  to  the  re- 
quirement of  baptism.  The  Christians  did 
not  make  it  a  condition  of  fellowship  in 
their  churches.  They  received  persons  into 
their  churches  by  giving  "  the  right  hand  of 
fellowship"  and  left  it  to  each  one  as  to 
whether  he  should  be  baptized  afterwards. 
When  Secrest  learned  the  design  and  place 
of  baptism  as  taught  by  Campbell,  he  went 
back  to  the  churches  he  had  established, 
calling  upon  the  people  to  be  "immersed 
for  the  remission  of  sins." 


The  Union  of  Reformers  193 

John  Gaston  was  led  into  the  fellowship 
of  the  Christians  by  Secrest  and  became  a 
close  personal  friend  and  preaching  compan- 
ion of  Walter  Scott,  by  whom  he  was  brought 
over  to  the  views  of  the  Reformers.  They 
went  together  among  Baptist  and  New 
Light  churches,  bringing  them  together, 
where  they  existed  side  by  side,  as  in  Salem, 
New  Lisbon,  East  Fairfield,  Green,  New 
Garden,  Hanover  and  Minerva,  all  in  Ohio. 
Among  the  preachers  of  the  school  of  B.  W. 
Stone  in  Ohio  who  fell  in  with  the  teachings 
of  Campbell  and  Scott,  were  Joseph  Pan- 
coast,  James  Hughes,  Lewis  Hamrick,  Lewis 
Comer,  William  Schooley,  John  Flick  and 
John  Whitacre. 

It  was  in  Kentucky,  however,  the  home 
of  the  movement,  where  the  formal  union 
took  place  between  the  Reformers  and  the 
Christians.  They  were  stigmatized  as 
"Arians"  and  "Unitarians,"  on  account 
of  the  opposition  of  Stone  to  the  metaphys- 
ical doctrines  of  the  trinity,  the  divinity  of 


194      ^      Disciples  of  Christ 

Christ,  and  the  atonement.  He  was  dis- 
posed to  bring  forward  these  doctrines  in 
his  preaching  and  writing,  not  to  make  them 
tests  of  Christian  fellowship  but  to  criticise 
and  speculate  upon  them,  to  the  neglect  of 
the  simple  and  essential  doctrines  of  Chris- 
tianity. His  opposition  to  Calvinism  be- 
gan as  a  revolt  against  these  orthodox  doc- 
trines, and  without  pausing  to  understand 
his  own  view  of  them,  his  enemies  drew 
the  conclusion  that  he  passed  over  to  the 
extreme  Unitarian  position.  As  a  matter  of 
fact  he  taught  an  evangelical  and  biblical 
doctrine  upon  these  subjects  which  would 
be  regarded  as  orthodox  to-day.  But  ene- 
mies of  the  movement  were  glad  to  believe 
and  circulate  the  worst  constructions  of 
their  teaching,  so  that  prejudice  against 
them  was  bitter  in  orthodox  circles.  They 
had  no  stronger  haters  than  the  Baptists, 
and  when  some  of  the  Reforming  Baptists 
were  found  to  be  mixing  with  them  in 
purely  religious  intercourse,  the  orthodox 


The  Union  of  Reformers  195 

were  outraged.  In  1828  the  North  District 
Association,  notwithstanding  the  presence 
of  a  strong  Reforming  party,  resolved  not 
to  have  correspondence  with  any  association 
that  would  retain  in  its  connection  a  church 
that  communed  with  Pedobaptists  or  with 
Arians.  The  Baptists  of  the  Mayslick  church 
were  grieved  that  some  of  their  brethren 
were  opening  the  meeting  houses  to  the 
Arians.  Bracken  association  voiced  her 
grievances  against  the  Reformers  as  those 
who  were  not  satisfied  until  they  had 
brought  into  the  churches  and  to  the  com- 
munion table  every  one  that  professed 
faith  in  Christ,  regardless  of  whether  they 
were  Arians  or  anything  else.  Presbyte- 
rians and  Methodists  held  the  Christians  in 
the  same  light. 

It  was  under  reproaches  such  as  these  that 
the  Reformers  began  to  associate  with  the 
Christians.  The  latter  seems  to  have  been 
the  party  principally  influenced  by  this  as- 
sociation.   Stone  always  acknowledged  his 


196      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

debt  to  Campbell  for  many  important  truths 
and  wrote  to  him  in  1827  as  follows: 
"  Brother  Campbell,  your  talents  and  learn- 
ing we  have  highly  respected;  your  cause 
we  have  generally  approved;  your  religious 
views,  in  many  points,  accord  with  our 
own;  and  to  one  point  we  have  hoped  we 
both  were  directing  our  efforts,  which  point 
is  to  unite  the  flock  of  Christ,  scattered  in 
the  dark  and  cloudy  day."  "  From  you  we 
have  learned  more  fully  the  evil  of  speculat- 
ing on  religion,  and  have  made  considerable 
proficiency  in  correcting  ourselves."  But 
he  goes  on  to  lament  the  tendency  in  some 
of  Campbell's  writings  to  speculate  upon  re- 
ligious questions  in  a  metaphysical  way. 
Campbell  replied:  "Some  weak  heads 
amongst  my  Baptist  brethren  have  been 
scandalized  at  me  because  I  called  you 
brother  Stone.  What  !  say  they,  call  an 
Arian  heretic  a  brother}  I  know  nothing 
of  his  Arianism,  said  I,  nor  of  his  Calvin- 
ism."   "  1  am  truly  sorry  to  find  that  certain 


The  Union  of  Reformers  197 

opinions  called  Arian  or  Unitarian,  or  some- 
thing else,  are  about  becoming  the  sectarian 
badge  of  a  people  who  have  assumed  the 
sacred  name  Christians;  and  that  some 
peculiar  views  of  atonement  or  reconcilia- 
tion, are  likely  to  become  characteristic  of  a 
people  who  have  claimed  the  high  character 
and  dignified  relation  of  "the  Church  of 
Christ."  I  do  not  say  that  such  is  yet  the 
fact;  but  things  are,  in  my  opinion,  looking 
that  way;  and  if  not  suppressed  in  the  bud, 
the  name  Christian  will  be  as  much  a  sec- 
tarian name  as  Lutheran,  Methodist,  or 
Presbyterian." 

From  time  to  time  friendly  communica- 
tions passed  between  the  two  great  leaders 
of  the  movements,  calling  out  the  position 
and  attitude  of  each  as  to  the  practicability 
of  the  union  of  their  respective  followers. 
What  seemed  to  be  serious  obstacles  to  the 
union  in  the  way  of  differences  in  practice 
were  discussed.  In  1831  Stone  wrote  as 
follows:   "The  question  is  going  the  round 


198      The  Disciples  of  Christ 


of  society,  and  is  often  proposed  to  us, 
Why  are  not  you  and  the  Reformed  Bap- 
tists one  people  ?  Or,  why  are  you  not 
united?  We  have  uniformly  answered:  In 
spirit  we  are  united,  and  that  no  reason  ex- 
ists on  our  side  to  prevent  the  union  in 
form."  But  there  were  certain  differences 
which  kept  them  apart,  and  these  Stone 
states  as  follows:  "1.  That  we  have  fel- 
lowship and  communion  with  unimmersed 
persons.  They  contend — so  we  understand 
them — that,  according  to  the  New  Institu- 
tion, none  but  the  immersed  have  their  sins 
remitted,  and  therefore  they  cannot  com- 
mune with  the  unimmersed.  .  .  .  We  be- 
lieve and  acknowledge  that  baptism  is  or- 
dained by  the  King  a  means  for  the  remis- 
sion of  sins  to  penitent  believers,  but  we 
cannot  say  that  immersion  is  the  sine  qua 
non,  without  maintaining  the  awful  conse- 
quences above,  and  without  contradicting 
our  own  experience.  We  therefore  teach 
the  doctrine  '  Believe,  repent,  and  be  im~ 


The  Union  of  Reformers  199 

mersed  for  the  remission  of  sins,'  and  we 
endeavor  to  convince  our  hearers  of  its 
truth,  but  we  exercise  patience  and  for- 
bearance towards  such  pious  persons  as 
cannot  be  convinced. 

"2.  Another  cause  or  reason  why  they 
and  we  are  not  united  as  one  people  is,  that 
we  have  taken  different  names.  They  ac- 
knowledge the  name  Christian  as  most  ap- 
propriate; but  because  they  think  this  name 
is  disgraced  by  us  who  wear  it,  and  that  to 
it  may  be  attached  the  idea  of  Unitarian  or 
Trinitarian,  they  reject  it,  and  have  taken 
the  older  name  Disciple.  This  they  have 
done  in  order  to  be  distinguished  from  us. 
.  .  .  We  are  ready  any  moment  to  meet 
and  unite  with  those  brethren,  or  any 
others  who  believe  in  and  obey  the  Saviour, 
according  to  their  best  understanding  of  his 
will,  on  the  Bible  but  not  on  opinions  of  its 
truth." 

While  the  great  leaders  were  discussing 
their  differences  and  the  obstacles  to  union, 


200      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

the  preachers  and  the  people  were  consum- 
mating union  between  Reformers  and 
Christians  wherever  it  was  possible  to  do 
so  in  local  communities.  John  T.  Johnson, 
as  soon  as  he  made  the  acquaintance  of  the 
views  of  both  Campbell  and  Stone,  con- 
cluded that  there  was  not  sufficient  differ- 
ence to  keep  their  followers  apart  and  began 
at  once  to  urge  a  union.  Stone  lived  near 
to  him  at  Georgetown,  Kentucky,  and 
an  intimate  intercourse  sprang  up  between 
them  which  resulted  in  Johnson's  joining 
Stone  as  one  of  the  editors  of  the  Christian 
Messenger — a  periodical  established  by  Stone 
in  1826.  To  promote  a  closer  relationship 
and  acquaintance  between  the  Disciples  and 
Christians  Johnson  invited  John  Smith,  who 
was  known  to  be  friendly  with  the  Chris- 
tians, to  come  to  Georgetown  in  November, 
1831,  to  hold  a  meeting  with  him,  and  con- 
fer upon  the  practicability  and  conditions  of 
union  between  the  two  bodies.  Several 
conferences  were  held  and  they  arranged  to 


The  Union  of  Reformers  201 

have  a  general  conference  at  Lexington, 
January  i,  1832.  Representatives  of  the 
two  movements  were  invited,  and  Smith 
and  Stone,  the  one  for  the  Disciples  and  the 
other  for  the  Christians,  were  appointed  to 
speak.  They  agreed  in  their  proposals  to 
make  the  Scriptures  the  basis  of  their  union, 
and  began  the  consummation  of  it  by  ex- 
tending the  hand  of  fellowship  before  the 
company  then  and  there  present.  The 
members  of  the  two  bodies  followed  the 
example  of  the  two  speakers  and  gave  to 
each  other  the  hand  of  fellowship  amidst 
universal  thanksgiving  and  rejoicing.  Some 
persons  asked  the  Christians  after  the  union, 
**  Are  there  no  differences  of  opinion  be- 
tween you  and  the  Reformers  ?  "  To  which 
they  replied,  "We  are  not  concerned  to 
know;  we  have  never  asked  them  what 
their  opinions  were,  nor  have  they  asked 
us.  If  they  have  opinions  different  from 
ours,  they  are  welcome  to  have  them,  pro- 
vided they  do  not  endeavor  to  impose  them 


202      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

on  us  as  articles  of  faith,  and  they  say  the 
same  of  us." 

This  act  of  union  could  not  bind  any  one 
but  those  present  and  parties  to  it.  To  ex- 
tend it  among  the  two  bodies  throughout 
Kentucky  and  other  regions,  two  evangelists 
were  chosen,  John  Smith  for  the  Disciples 
and  John  Rogers  for  the  Christians,  to  go 
together  among  the  churches  consummating 
the  union.  The  event  was  felt  to  be  a 
signal  victory  for  the  cause  of  Christian 
union  as  advocated  by  both  parties.  Similar 
coalitions  between  Disciples  and  Christians 
took  place  at  the  same  time  in  Indiana, 
Illinois,  and  Tennessee.  There  was  an  ele- 
ment, however,  among  the  Christians  that 
looked  with  no  favor  upon  union  with  the 
Disciples  because  of  their  teaching  concern- 
ing baptism  and  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  who 
refused  to  go  into  it.  They  have  survived, 
after  union  with  the  followers  of  James 
O'Kelley  and  Abner  Jones,  as  the  ''Christian 
Connection  Church."  There  were  prejudices 


The  Union  of  Reformers 


against  the  union  on  the  part  of  many  Re- 
forming Baptists  because  of  the  reputation 
of  the  Christians  for  Arianism,  and  loose 
teaching  on  baptism.  John  Smith  had  no 
little  difficulty  in  convincing  his  friends  in 
the  churches  about  Mt.  Sterling  that  the 
union  was  wise  and  scriptural,  and  he  felt 
it  needful  to  put  out  an  "Address"  to  his 
Reforming  brethren  defining  his  action  and 
correcting  false  impressions  concerning  the 
teaching  and  practices  of  the  Christians. 
They  had  never  heard  any  of  the  preachers 
of  the  Christians  and  knew  of  them  only  by 
hearsay.  Wherever  the  two  evangelists 
went  they  met  with  objections  and  preju- 
dices against  the  union  on  the  part  of  mem- 
bers of  one  body  or  the  other.  The  con- 
gregations of  the  two  bodies  in  Lexington 
came  together  at  first,  but  later  separated 
on  account  of  differences  and  did  not  finally 
unite  until  1835. 

The  contributions  of  the  Christians  to  the 
joint  movement  were  by  no  means  unim- 


204  Disciples  of  Christ 

portant.  The  biographer  of  John  Smith 
estimates  the  number  of  Christians  who 
came  into  the  union  in  Kentucky  alone  at 
8,000.  The  number  must  have  reached  a 
third  or  a  half  more  in  other  states.  They 
contributed  to  the  movement,  besides  Stone, 
several  other  preachers  of  superior  talent 
and  character.  Samuel  Rogers  was  born  in 
Virginia  in  1789;  came  to  Kentucky  in  1793 
with  his  parents,  and  finally  settled  there  in 
1812.  He  was  converted  under  the  preach- 
ing of  B.  W.  Stone,  and  after  serving  as  a 
volunteer  soldier  in  the  war  of  1812,  began 
to  preach  the  gospel  as  he  had  learned  it 
from  the  Christians.  He  travelled  exten- 
sively as  a  preacher  through  Kentucky, 
Ohio,  Indiana,  Illinois  and  Missouri,  and 
everywhere  met  with  success.  His  early 
life,  as  narrated  by  himself,  was  full  of  the 
labors  and  privations  of  an  itinerant  preacher 
in  the  wilds  of  backwoods  settlements,  for 
which  he  received  in  payment  scarcely 
enough  to  support  himself.  On  many  long 


The  Union  of  Reformers  205 

journeys  by  boat  and  on  horseback,  he  re- 
ceived less  than  he  had  expended  along  the 
way.  From  reading  the  writings  of  Alex- 
ander Campbell  and  after  meeting  and 
hearing  him  at  Wilmington,  Ohio,  in  1825, 
"cloud  after  cloud  rolled  away  from  his 
mind,  letting  in  upon  his  soul  light  and  joy 
and  hope  that  no  tongue  can  express."  The 
members  of  the  church  at  Antioch,  where 
he  lived  and  preached,  began  to  study  the 
Bible  in  the  new  light,  and  within  a  year 
unanimously  introduced  "the  ancient  order 
of  things"  into  their  government  and  wor- 
ship. He  was  thus  prepared  for  the  coales- 
cence of  the  Disciples  and  Christians  which 
began  in  Ohio  in  1827  and  was  consum- 
mated in  Kentucky  in  1832.  During  a  min- 
istry which  continued  past  the  eighty-fourth 
year  of  his  age  he  baptized  more  than  seven 
thousand  persons.  Associated  with  him  in 
the  work  of  the  ministry  and  as  a  com- 
panion on  many  of  his  travels,  was  his 
younger  brother,  John  Rogers,  whom  he 


2o6      The  Disciples  of  Christ 


introduced  to  the  ministry  in  1819.  He  was 
baptized  by  Stone  in  1818  and  studied  under 
him  at  Georgetown,  Kentucky,  and  was 
ordained  to  the  ministry  by  him  in  1820. 
He  met  and  heard  Alexander  Campbell  at 
Carlisle,  Kentucky,  in  1824,  from  whom  he 
"learned  the  true  design  of  baptism — the 
necessity  for  weekly  communion — the  dis- 
tinction between  faith  and  opinion — and  the 
true  basis  of  union  upon  the  great  and  all- 
comprehensive  proposition  that  Jesus  is  the 
Christ  the  Son  of  God."  He  "cordially 
embraced  the  views  of  the  Reformation 
about  the  year  1831,"  and  was  one  of  the 
most  active  promoters  of  the  union  between 
the  followers  of  Campbell  and  Stone  in 
1832.  He  was  chosen  by  the  Christians  to 
travel  with  John  Smith,  the  representative 
of  the  Disciples,  to  unite  the  two  bodies  in 
Kentucky. 

Thomas  M.  Allen  was  born  in  Virginia 
in  1797.  He  was  brought  up  under  Pres- 
byterian influences,  studied  and  practiced 


The  Union  of  Reformers  207 

law  until  he  was  converted  by  Stone  in 
1823.  He  was  one  of  the  six  original 
charter  members  of  the  "Old  Union" 
church,  Fayette  County,  Kentucky.  He 
began  to  preach  and  was  ordained  by  Stone 
in  1825.  He  established  churches  at  Paris, 
Antioch,  Clintonville,  and  Cynthiana,  Ken- 
tucky. After  the  union  of  the  Christians 
and  Disciples,  in  which  he  took  a  leading 
part,  he  moved  to  Missouri,  and  was  one 
of  the  earliest  as  well  as  the  most  influen- 
tial preachers  of  the  Disciples  in  that  state. 

John  Allen  Gano  was  another  preacher 
who  came  under  the  influence  of  Stone, 
first  as  a  student  in  his  school  at  George- 
town, and  later  as  an  attendant  upon  his 
ministrations  in  the  pulpit.  He  was  con- 
verted and  baptized  in  1827  by  T.  M.  Allen, 
and  began  at  once  to  preach  as  he  had 
opportunity.  He  had  prepared  himself  for 
the  practice  of  law,  but  his  fervent  religious 
nature  and  his  readiness  of  expression  so 
admirably  qualified  him  for  the  preaching 


2o8      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

of  the  gospel,  that  he  found  no  difficulty 
in  turning  away  from  his  long-cherished 
purpose  to  practice  law.  He  was  the 
grandson  of  the  eminent  Baptist  preacher 
of  New  York  City,  Rev.  John  Gano,  who 
came  to  Kentucky  and  died  there  in  1804. 
He  met  Alexander  Campbell  in  1827  and 
came  at  once  under  his  influence. 

Among  other  preachers  who  came  by 
way  of  the  Stone  movement  into  the  ranks 
of  the  united  body  must  be  mentioned  the 
two  brothers,  F.  R.  Palmer  and  H.  D.  Pal- 
mer, B.  F.  Hall,  Tolbert  Fanning  and  Elijah 
Goodwin.  The  readiness  with  which  the 
leading  preachers  espoused  the  cause  of 
Campbell  justified  the  observation  of 
Samuel  Rogers  when  he  declared:  "Stone, 
and  those  laboring  with  him,  had  consti- 
tuted churches  throughout  central  and 
northern  Kentucky  upon  the  Bible  and 
the  Bible  alone,  and  all  these  without 
exception  came  early  into  the  reforma- 
tion.    Stone's  reformation  was  the  seed 


The  Union  of  Reformers  209 

bed  of  the  reformation  produced  by  Alex- 
ander Campbell."  These  preachers  and 
many  others  of  lesser  note  had  prepared 
the  way  for  the  teaching  of  Alexander 
Campbell  not  only  in  Kentucky,  but  through 
Ohio,  Virginia,  Tennessee,  Indiana,  Illinois, 
and  Missouri. 

Stone  and  his  followers  were  primarily 
Christian  unionists,  as  had  been  Thomas 
Campbell  and  the  Christian  Association  of 
Washington.  There  was  emphasis  upon 
reformation  of  faith  and  practice  in  their 
advocacy,  as  a  preparation  for  union,  but 
the  union  of  the  children  of  God  was  ever 
the  end  before  them.  As  a  consequence, 
their  basis  of  fellowship  was  broader,  and 
larger  liberty  was  allowed  to  the  individual 
conscience.  They  did  not  insist  upon  bap- 
tism as  a  condition  of  fellowship  in  their 
churches.  Stone's  conception  of  union  was 
more  spiritual  than  that  of  Campbell.  He 
looked  to  a  diffusion  of  the  spirit  of  holi- 
ness and  love  among  Christians  to  unite 


210      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

them,  while  Campbell  rested  his  hope  of 
union  upon  an  agreement  in  New  Testa- 
ment faith  and  practice.  Campbell  and 
many  of  his  followers  held  aloof  from  the 
Christians  at  first  on  account  of  their  sup- 
posed departure  from  sound  doctrine,  and 
it  was  not  until  the  Christians  had  practic- 
ally signified  their  acceptance  of  the  teach- 
ing of  the  Reformers  upon  the  subject  of 
baptism  and  the  Lord's  supper,  that  union 
with  them  was  deemed  advisable.  Union 
came  because  the  two  parties  found  them- 
selves upon  the  same  ground  of  faith  and 
practice.  The  Stone  movement  was  born 
out  of  a  religious  revival  and  the  preachers 
of  that  connection  were  primarily  winners 
of  souls.  They  were  all  evangelists;  and 
it  was  due  to  this  fact  that  the  movement 
spread  so  rapidly  and  widely.  Alexander 
Campbell  was  not  an  evangelist.  He  was 
essentially  a  teacher  and  set  for  his  aim  the 
transformation  of  the  minds  of  Christian 
people  with  respect  to  the  doctrines  of  Chris- 


The  Union  of  Reformers     2 1  i 

tianity.  The  Campbell  movement  started 
as  a  propaganda  among  the  churches  and 
would  have  resulted  in  a  proselytism  when 
separated  from  the  Baptists  had  it  not  been 
leavened  by  the  evangelism  of  Walter  Scott 
and  the  Stone  movement.  These  two  ele- 
ments, a  proselytism  and  an  evangelism, 
have  survived  side  by  side  throughout  the 
history  of  the  Disciples,  and  have  con- 
tributed more  than  all  other  elements  to 
their  growth. 


CHAPTER  X 


EARLY  GROWTH  AND  ORGANIZATION 

With  the  separation  of  the  Reformers 
from  the  Baptists,  and  their  coalescence  with 
the  followers  of  Barton  W.  Stone,  a  new 
religious  party  assumed  form  among  Ameri- 
can denominations  under  the  name,  Disciples 
of  Christ  or  Christians.  They  were  charged 
with  a  message  of  reformation  to  their  re- 
ligious neighbors  and  a  gospel  of  imme- 
diate repentance  to  the  unconverted.  Every 
preacher  of  the  new  communion  was  a  prop- 
agandist and  travelling  evangelist.  Their 
one  purpose  now  was  to  plant  churches  of 
the  primitive  order  wherever  they  could  get 
a  large  enough  company  together. 

The  movement  spread  principally  from 
two  centres,  Ohio  and  Kentucky.  From 
Ohio  it  was  carried  eastward  into  New  York 
and  Pennsylvania ;  and  westward  into  Michi- 

212 


Early  Growth  and  Organization  213 

gan,  northern  Ohio  and  Indiana,  and  Wis- 
consin. From  Kentucky  it  was  carried 
eastward  and  southward  into  Virginia, 
Maryland,  the  Carolinas,  Tennessee,  and 
Alabama;  and  westward  into  Indiana,  Illi- 
nois, and  Missouri.  The  movement  spread 
chiefly  in  a  westward  direction  from  Ken- 
tucky along  the  lines  of  emigration.  Very 
often  a  sufficient  number  of  emigrants  to 
establish  the  nucleus  of  a  society  found 
themselves  settled  together  in  the  same 
neighborhood  and  sent  for  a  preacher  to 
hold  meetings  and  constitute  them  into  a 
church.  The  movement  was  essentially  a 
westward  movement.  It  never  made  any 
notable  progress  east  of  the  place  of  its 
origin,  and  remains  comparatively  weak 
and  unknown  to  the  present  time  east  of 
the  Alleghanies.  Churches  sprang  up  in 
this  ^^rly  period  in  all  of  the  principal 
cities  of  the  East,  as  Philadelphia,  Buffalo, 
New  York  and  Baltimore,  by  a  sifting  proc- 
ess from  the  Baptists  and  other  churches, 


214      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

and  by  the  occasional  removal  of  members 
from  the  West;  but  they  have  remained 
small  and  have  survived  only  through  a 
critical  struggle  for  existence.  The  read- 
ing of  the  Christian  Baptist  and  the  Mil- 
lennial Harbinger  and  numerous  tracts  and 
books  did  much  to  propagate  the  move- 
ment beyond  the  circuit  of  the  travelling 
evangelist,  so  that  before  1850  there  were 
churches  in  the  British  Provinces  and  in  all 
of  the  British  Isles,  as  well  as  in  most  of 
the  states  of  the  Union. 

The  movement  spread  westward  by  leaps 
and  bounds,  first  among  Baptist  churches 
and  in  regions  touched  by  the  Stone  move- 
ment, and  then  independently  through  emi- 
gration and  evangelization.  The  begin- 
nings of  the  movement  in  Ohio  were 
among  the  Baptists  of  the  Mahoning  and 
Stillwater  associations.  Both  associations, 
with  few  exceptions  among  either  preachers 
or  churches,  were  brought  over  to  the 
views  of  Campbell  and  composed  the  first 


Early  Growth  and  Organization  2 1 5 

churches  of  the  Disciples.  In  these  churches 
was  also  a  large  ingredient  of  the  followers 
of  Stone.  The  churches  multiplied  rapidly 
under  the  labors  of  such  men  as  Walter 
Scott,  William  Hayden,  J.  H.  Jones,  Isaac 
Errett,  Jonas  Hartzel,  J.  J.  Moss,  A.  B.  Green, 
W.  A.  Belding  and  others.  The  early  his- 
tory of  the  Disciples  in  eastern  Ohio  is  in- 
cidentally connected  with  the  rise  of  Mor- 
monism,  on  account  of  the  conversion  to 
that  faith  of  Sidney  Rigdon,  the  early  as- 
sociate of  Alexander  Campbell  and  Walter 
Scott.  His  conversion  occurred  in  1830, 
through  the  influence  of  two  missionaries 
who  came  to  his  home  at  Mentor,  Ohio. 
He  is  said  to  have  obtained  more  influence 
over  Joseph  Smith,  the  founder  of  Mor- 
monism,  than  any  other  living  man;  and 
to  him  was  due  the  transfer  of  the  seat  of 
Mormonism  from  New  York  to  Kirtland, 
Ohio,  and  its  transformation  into  a  commu- 
nistic society.  Alexander  Campbell  was  one 
of  the  earliest  antagonists  of  the  system. 


2i6      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

The  Disciples  were  greatly  disturbed  by  its 
progress  and  suffered  the  loss  of  several 
churches.  There  were  very  few  churches 
in  the  northwestern  and  central  sections  of 
the  state  in  this  early  period.  There  were  a 
few  churches  in  the  southwestern  section 
in  and  around  Cincinnati.  The  first  church 
in  Cincinnati  was  an  offshoot  from  the 
Enon  Baptist  Church,  under  the  leadership 
of  James  Challen,  its  pastor,  who  adopted 
the  teachings  of  Campbell,  and  became  the 
pastor  of  the  first  church  of  Reformers. 
This  city  received  frequent  visits  from 
Campbell,  and  was  the  scene  of  two  of 
his  debates,  one  with  the  skeptic  Robert 
Owen,  in  1829,  on  the  "  Evidences  of  Chris- 
tianity," and  the  other  with  Bishop  J.  B. 
Purcell  of  the  Roman  Catholic  Church, 
in  1837,  on  the  "Roman  Catholic  Religion." 
Both  debates  widened  the  fame  and  influence 
of  Campbell,  while  the  one  with  Owen  put 
the  entire  Christian  world  under  obligation 
to  him.    The  movement  in  this  region 


Early  Growth  and  Organization  2 1 7 

of  the  state  was  principally  promoted  by 
Walter  Scott,  James  Challen,  D.  S.  Burnet, 
L.  L.  Pinkerton,  L.  H.Jameson,  Dr.  R.  Rich- 
ardson and  J.  J.  Moss.  The  first  form  of 
association  among  the  Disciples  in  Ohio 
was  the  "yearly  meeting";  but  this  was 
felt  to  be  useless  for  missionary  purposes, 
and  in  1852  they  organized  a  state  mis- 
sionary society  for  "the  proclamation  of 
the  original  gospel  within  the  bounds  of 
the  state  of  Ohio."  At  this  time  there  were 
about  300  churches  and  18,000  members  in 
the  state.  With  the  multiplication  and 
growth  of  the  churches  arose  the  need 
of  an  educational  institution  to  provide 
a  properly  equipped  ministry.  To  meet 
this  need  and  to  provide  a  school  for  the 
sons  and  daughters  of  Disciples  in  the 
state,  the  Western  Eclectic  Institute  was 
established  in  1850  at  Hiram,  Ohio,  about 
thirty  miles  from  Cleveland.  The  name 
was  later  changed  to  Hiram  College. 
The  beginnings  of  the  movement  in 


2i8      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

Kentucky,  as  in  Ohio,  were  among  Bap- 
tist churches.  The  writings  of  Campbell 
preceded  his  visit  to  Kentucky  in  1823,  on 
the  occasion  of  his  debate  with  Maccalla. 
This  visit  greatly  extended  his  influence, 
and,  through  the  publication  of  the  Chris- 
tian Baptist,  he  became  a  regular  monthly 
visitor  to  an  ever  increasing  number  of  sub- 
scribers in  Baptist  churches.  One  Baptist 
preacher  after  another  adopted  his  views 
and  taught  them  to  the  churches.  In  this 
state  the  movement  made  more  extensive 
conquests  in  the  early  period  than  in  any 
other  state.  The  city  of  Lexington  became 
the  centre  from  which  it  radiated  in  every 
direction.  It  was  propagated  under  the 
preaching  of  P.  S.  Fall,  John  Smith, 
j.  T.  Johnson,  John  Rogers,  B.  W.  Stone, 
Alexander  Campbell,  Aylett  Raines,  and 
many  other  great  preachers  under  their 
leadership.  As  soon  as  the  Reformers 
were  separated  from  the  Baptists  they 
began  to  hold  "yearly  meetings"  for  edi- 


Early  Growth  and  Organization  219 

fication  and  mutual  acquaintance.  It  was 
not  long  before  a  more  profitable  form 
of  association  for  missionary  work  was 
adopted.  The  effective  work  done  by 
John  Smith  and  John  Rogers,  in  estab- 
lishing new  churches  and  uniting  the  Chris- 
tians and  Disciples  after  the  formal  union 
at  Lexington  in  1832,  demonstrated  the 
value  of  supporting  evangelists  by  co- 
operation. The  two  men  were  kept  in 
the  field  in  1833  and  1834,  and  in  1835 
four  evangelists  with  limited  fields  were 
appointed.  These  evangelists  were  sent 
out  and  supported  by  groups  of  neigh- 
boring churches,  by  special  voluntary 
agreement  to  provide  their  salary  for  a 
year;  and  such  arrangements  were  re- 
newed from  year  to  year.  This  was  the 
customary  form  of  cooperation  in  the 
early  period,  and  was  characteristic  of 
Kentucky;  but  we  meet  it  in  Ohio,  Indi- 
ana and  Missouri.  State  meetings  began 
to  be  held  as  early  as  1844,  and  mission- 


220      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

ary  work  by  the  state  as  a  whole  began 
in  1850.  A  school  under  the  management 
of  Disciples  was  established  at  George- 
town in  1836,  through  the  initiative  of 
T.  F.  Johnson  and  J.  T.  Johnson.  It  was 
called  Bacon  College,  after  the  philos- 
opher, Sir  Francis  Bacon.  It  was  removed 
to  Harrodsburg  in  1839,  where  its  work 
was  suspended  in  1850.  Through  the 
efforts  of  J.  B.  Bowman,  a  graduate  of  the 
college,  its  charter  was  renewed  and  en- 
larged and  became  the  basis  of  a  new 
institution  in  1858  called  Kentucky  Uni- 
versity. It  was  moved  to  Lexington  in 
1865.  A  Bible  College  was  established  in 
connection  with  it,  which  has  probably 
educated  more  men  for  the  ministry  than 
any  other  single  school  among  the  Dis- 
ciples. 

The  movement  in  Indiana  had  its  sources 
chiefly  among  the  Christians  and  Baptists, 
though  the  Dunkards  contributed  somewhat 
to  the  early  period.    The  pioneers  in  the 


Early  Growth  and  Organization  221 

work  were  Beverly  Vawter,  J.  P.  Thompson, 
John  Wright,  John  O'Kane,  Elijah  Goodwin, 
J.  M.  Mathes,  L.  H.  Jameson,  S.  R.  Hoshour, 
B.  K.  Smith,  and  Benjamin  Franklin.  Co- 
operative missionary  work  was  begun  in 
1833  by  the  churches  of  Rush  and  Fayette 
Counties  in  uniting  to  send  out  and  support 
John  O'Kane  as  a  missionary  through  the 
state.  In  1839  ^  state  meeting  was  held 
at  Indianapolis,  and  in  1844  at  a  similar 
meeting  at  Connersville  the  state  was  di- 
vided into  four  districts  and  an  evangelist 
put  in  each.  The  scheme  fell  through  be- 
fore the  end  of  the  first  year,  and  no  further 
cooperative  work  was  done  until  1849. 
Under  the  leadership  of  Ovid  Butler, 
Northwestern  Christian  University  was 
established  in  1850  at  Indianapolis.  The 
name  was  later  changed  to  Butler  Col- 
lege. 

Illinois  received  the  reformation  from 
Kentucky  in  the  early  period  through  the 
evangelistic  labors  of  Christian  preachers. 


222      The  Disciples  of*  Christ 

When  B.  W.  Stone  removed  from  Kentucky 
to  Jacksonville,  Illinois,  in  1834,  he  found  in 
the  place  a  church  of  Christians  and  one  of 
Disciples  that  had  not  united  as  they  had  in 
other  places.  He  refused  to  become  a  mem- 
ber of  either  church  until  they  united.  The 
preachers  under  whom  the  body  was  ex- 
tended and  organized  throughout  the  cen- 
tral and  southern  parts  were  B.  W.  Stone, 
D.  P.  Henderson,  W.  W.  Happy,  Josephus 
Hewet,  and  John  T.  Jones.  The  Disciples 
began  to  hold  annual  state  meetings  in  1832 
but  there  was  no  organization  for  missionary 
work  until  1856  when  the  Illinois  Christian 
Missionary  Society  was  organized.  At  the 
annual  state  meeting  at  Abingdon  in  1852  a 
resolution  was  brought  before  the  conven- 
tion by  an  educational  committee  appointed 
the  previous  year,  recommending  to  the 
churches  the  recognition  of  Walnut  Grove 
Academy  as  the  institution  of  learning  of 
the  Disciples  in  the  state  of  Illinois.  The 
Disciples  were  urged  to  foster  it  by  sending 


Early  Growth  and  Organization  223 

to  it  their  sons  and  daughters,  and  donating 
to  its  library  and  apparatus,  and  raising  such 
means  as  would  enable  the  trustees  to  place 
it  upon  a  sure  and  permanent  basis.  This 
school  was  started  as  a  private  enterprise 
by  A.  S.  Fisher,  a  student  from  Bethany 
College,  in  1848,  under  the  patronage  of 
several  members  of  the  Church  of  the  Dis- 
ciples in  the  community.  It  was  chosen  as 
the  school  of  the  church  because  it  was  the 
only  institution  of  learning  in  the  state  con- 
trolled by  Disciples,  and  because  it  proposed 
to  educate  men  for  the  ministry  without 
charging  them  tuition.  The  churches  or- 
ganized a  board  of  education  in  1852  to 
promote  primitive  Christianity  by  establish- 
ing schools  exclusively  under  church  con- 
trol. Walnut  Grove  Academy  was  chartered 
as  Eureka  College  in  1855.  Abingdon  Col- 
lege, organized  and  conducted  by  Disciples 
in  the  interest  of  religious  education  since 
1853,  was  consolidated  with  Eureka  College 
in  1884.    From  the  beginning  the  college 


224      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

has  been  an  important  factor  in  supplying 
men  for  the  ministry  and  developing  the 
work  of  the  body  in  the  state. 

The  state  of  Missouri  lay  in  the  path  of 
emigration  to  the  west  and  was  among  the 
first  to  receive  visits  from  Christian  preach- 
ers from  Kentucky.  Thomas  McBride  came 
under  the  teaching  of  B.  W.  Stone  in  Ken- 
tucky, moved  to  Missouri  in  1816,  and  was 
the  first  Christian  preacher  who  crossed  the 
Mississippi  River  to  preach  the  Bible  alone 
as  the  basis  of  Christian  union.  He  preached 
and  established  churches  in  Howard,  Boone, 
Franklin  and  other  adjacent  counties  lying 
along  the  Missouri  River.  Samuel  Rogers 
was  the  second  Christian  preacher  to  go  to 
Missouri.  He  made  his  first  journey  in  1819 
and  found  many  churches  already  established 
by  McBride.  These  early  Christian  churches, 
together  with  many  Baptist  churches,  pro- 
vided congenial  soil  for  the  teachings  of 
Alexander  Campbell  and  out  of  them  came 
the  first  churches  of  the  Disciples  in  the 


Early  Growth  and  Organization  225 

state.  The  reformation  was  developed  in 
the  early  period  under  the  preaching  of  such 
men  as  J.  H.  Haden,  T.  M.  Allen,  M.  P. 
Wills,  F.  R.  Palmer,  Absalom  Rice,  James 
Love,  Jacob  Creath,  Allen  Wright,  Jacob 
and  Joseph  Coons,  Henry  Thomas,  and 
Duke  Young.  The  churches  began  to  hold 
state  meetings  very  early  and  by  1837  had 
begun  to  cooperate  in  missionary  work. 
By  1850  there  were  estimated  to  be  16,000 
members  in  the  state. 

The  first  church  of  the  Disciples  in  Iowa 
was  organized  by  David  R.  Chance  in  1836 
at  Lost  Creek,  and  the  first  regular  ministers 
to  devote  all  their  time  to  preaching  were 
Aaron  Chatterton  and  Nelson  A.  McConnell. 
In  addition  to  the  preaching  by  these  two 
men  the  cause  was  represented  in  the  pio- 
neer period  by  John  Rigdon,  S.  H.  Bonham, 
Jonas  Hartzel,  John  Martindale,  Pardee  But- 
ler, David  Bates,  D.  P.  Henderson,  Allen 
Hickey,  S.  B.  Downing  and  J.  K.  Cornell. 
The  first  cooperative  missionary  work  was 


226      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

done  in  1845,  and  the  first  state  meeting  was 
held  at  Marion  in  1850.  At  that  time  there 
were  thirty-nine  churches  and  2,000  mem- 
bers. The  state  missionary  society  was  or- 
ganized in  1855,  and  N.  A.  McConnell  was 
the  first  evangelist  sent  out.  The  churches 
took  steps  in  1856  to  establish  a  college  at 
Oskaloosa.  The  establishment  of  Drake 
University  in  1881  by  Gen.  F.  M.  Drake,  at 
Des  Moines,  came  to  overshadow  Oskaloosa 
College,  and  withdrew  the  support  and 
patronage  of  the  churches  from  it  to  such  a 
degree  that  it  was  obliged  finally  to  abandon 
its  work. 

The  first  converts  to  the  teaching  of 
Alexander  Campbell  in  England  were 
from  among  the  Scotch  Baptist  churches 
founded  by  Archibald  McLean.  In  1833 
P.  C.  Wyeth,  of  Virginia,  a  disciple  of 
Campbell,  went  to  Europe  to  study  art,  and 
while  in  London  wandered  into  a  Scotch 
Baptist  church  presided  over  by  Wm.  Jones. 
He  found  himself  among  Christians  of  like 


Early  Growth  and  Organization  227 

faith  and  order  and  told  Mr.  Jones  of  the 
"restoration  movement"  in  America. 
Correspondence  arose  between  Mr.  Jones 
and  Mr.  Campbell  upon  the  teachings  of 
the  Disciples  and  by  1835  the  writings  of 
Campbell  began  to  be  published  in  England 
under  the  title,  British  Millennial  Har- 
binger. To  James  Wallace,  who  started  a 
periodical  called  the  Christian  Messenger, 
belongs  the  principal  credit  for  the  early 
development  of  the  movement  in  England. 
By  1842  the  churches  of  the  Disciples  in  the 
United  Kingdom  numbered  forty-two,  with 
a  membership  of  1,300. 

The  first  centre  of  the  movement  was 
Bethany,  West  Virginia,  the  home  of  Alex- 
ander Campbell,  from  which  issued  the 
Christian  Baptist  and  Millennial  Har- 
binger. While  it  was  not  long  before  each 
state  had  its  own  centre  and  leaders,  its 
own  religious  papers  and  schools,  yet 
Campbell  continued  to  be  the  most  authori- 
tative person  and  his  paper  the  most  repre- 


228      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

sentative  and  influential,  and  his  college  the 
most  popular  among  the  Disciples  to  the 
time  of  his  death  in  1866.  His  writings 
were  read  in  every  state  in  the  Union,  and 
before  1840  nearly  every  state  had  churches 
established  upon  the  principles  he  advo- 
cated. 

The  rapid  growth  of  the  body  as  an  inde- 
pendent movement  and  its  continued  suc- 
cesses after  separation  from  the  Baptists, 
confirmed  the  belief  of  its  leaders  in  the 
correctness  of  their  principles  and  teach- 
ings. They  approached  other  religious 
bodies,  confident  of  their  advantage  over 
them,  and  accepted  the  frequent  secessions 
of  members  from  them  to  their  own  ranks 
as  evidence  of  it.  As  a  consequence  they 
became  and  were  reputed  to  be  inveterate 
proselytizers.  With  such  an  attitude,  all 
cordiality  departed  from  their  relationships 
with  other  denominations,  and  the  frequent 
public  debates  engaged  in  did  not  promote 
fraternity,  much  less  unity,  between  them. 


Early  Growth  and  Organization  229 

Scores  of  debates  were  held  between  rep- 
resentatives of  the  Disciples  and  Baptists 
and  other  bodies  upon  the  subject  of  bap- 
tism and  other  differences.  The  most 
notable  of  these  discussions  was  that  be- 
tween Alexander  Campbell  and  Rev.  N.  L. 
Rice,  a  Presbyterian  minister,  at  Lexington, 
Kentucky,  in  1842,  upon  the  subjects  of 
baptism,  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  creeds.  The 
presence  of  Henry  Clay  as  president  of  the 
board  of  five  moderators,  contributed  much 
to  the  dignity  and  notoriety  of  the  occasion. 
After  the  example  of  Campbell  it  was  con- 
sidered good  form  and  a  valiant  enterprise 
to  get  into  a  debate,  and  there  were  very 
few  of  the  leading  preachers  who  did  not 
bring  about  such  an  engagement  on  some 
subject.  While  it  was  not  always  possible 
to  avoid  a  public  debate,  yet  it  is  highly 
probable  that  many  preachers  coveted  the 
fame  and  courted  occasion  of  debate.  They 
justified  the  custom  on  the  ground  that  it 
was  a  condition  of  self-preservation  as  well 


230      The  Disciples  of  Christ 


as  a  means  of  publishing  the  truth  to  the 
world.  In  the  midst  of  such  religious  war- 
fare one  is  surprised  on  the  one  hand  at  the 
proposals  for  union,  but  on  the  other  hand 
not  surprised  at  the  poor  success  of  such 
proposals. 

A  meeting  between  the  Disciples  and  all 
other  religious  bodies  for  the  discussion  of 
a  basis  of  union  was  suggested  and  ar- 
ranged by  J.  T.  Johnson,  to  be  held  at  Lex- 
ington, Kentucky,  in  1841.  All  religious 
parties  were  invited  and  were  promised 
"equal  privileges."  Alexander  Campbell 
and  the  Disciples  were  present  in  full  force, 
but  only  one  representative  of  other  relig- 
ious bodies  came  in  the  person  of  Dr. 
Fishback,  and  he  was  a  Baptist  in  partial 
sympathy.  After  a  three  days'  discussion  of 
the  practicability  of  union  on  the  basis  of 
the  things  held  in  common  by  the  denomi- 
nations, the  following  resolution  was 
adopted:  "That  the  Bible,  and  the  Bible 
alone,  is  a  sufficient  foundation  on  which 


Early  Growth  and  Organization  231 

all  Christians  may  unite  and  build  to- 
gether." To  the  surprise  of  the  promoters 
of  it,  the  meeting  was  not  merely  ignored 
but  bitterly  opposed  by  other  bodies,  the 
Baptists  in  particular.  The  reason  for  this 
is  not  far  to  seek.  The  Disciples  proposed 
the  meeting  and  went  to  it  with  a  ready- 
made  plan  of  union  to  submit  and  defend. 
They  themselves  were  already  building  ac- 
cording to  the  plan,  and  to  other  bodies  it 
was  equivalent  to  an  invitation  to  discuss 
the  position  of  the  Disciples.  Their  plan 
had  failed  to  work  in  the  case  of  the  Bap- 
tists, with  whom  they  were  in  closest 
agreement  on  most  doctrinal  points,  and 
there  was  less  likelihood  that  it  would  suc- 
ceed in  the  case  of  Presbyterians  or  Meth- 
odists. They  were  simply  inviting  other 
parties  to  come  to  them,  and  union  was 
equivalent  to  absorption.  In  the  discussion 
of  the  question  of  union  they  were  con- 
scious of  having  everything  to  teach  and 
nothing  to  learn.    There  could  be  but  one 


232      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

plan  of  union,  that  of  the  New  Testament, 
and  it  was  one  they  had  received  and  were 
not  at  liberty  to  change.  The  problem  of 
union  was  not  an  open  one  to  them.  Nat- 
urally, other  denominationalists  were  not 
willing  to  put  themselves  in  the  attitude  of 
learners,  and  not  having  plans  of  their  own 
to  submit,  the  meeting  would  be  reduced 
to  a  discussion  on  the  Disciples'  own 
ground. 

The  body  very  early  developed  a  con- 
sciousness of  scriptural  correctness  and  in- 
fallibility which  placed  them  in  the  light  of 
a  very  narrow  and  exclusive  sect.  There 
was  an  element  among  them  that  con- 
tracted the  spirit  of  a  sect,  though  all  the 
time  professing  hatred  of  sectarianism. 
They  reprobated  the  state  of  other  Chris- 
tians and  declined  to  acknowledge  the 
Christian  status  of  those  not  in  fellowship 
with  them.  This  element  was  aroused  by 
the  admission  of  Alexander  Campbell  in  an 
article  in  the  Millennial  Harbinger  of  1837 


Early  Growth  and  Organization  233 

that  there  were  Christians  among  all  Prot- 
estant sects.  He  had  always  held  that 
view,  but  had  not  so  plainly  expressed  it  as 
in  reply  to  a  letter  asking  his  view  of  the 
matter.  His  definition  of  a  Christian  as 
"  one  that  believes  in  his  heart  that  Jesus  of 
Nazareth  is  the  Messiah,  the  Son  of  God; 
repents  of  his  sins,  and  obeys  him  in  all 
things  according  to  his  measure  of  knowl- 
edge of  his  will,"  aroused  the  bitter  criticism 
of  many  who  held,  that,  since  baptism  is 
for  the  remission  of  sins,  and  only  immer- 
sion is  baptism,  those  who  have  not  been 
immersed  are  still  in  their  sins  and  unsaved. 
Campbell  repudiated  this  view  with  indig- 
nation. This  discussion  developed  the 
presence  among  the  Disciples  of  two  di- 
vergent parties,  a  narrow,  literal  party,  and 
a  broad,  spiritual  party.  The  former  party 
went  on  to  identify  the  true  church  of 
Christ  by  certain  external  marks — its  creed, 
worship,  organization,  and  discipline — and 
identified  the  true  Christian  as  one  in  fel- 


234      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

lowship  with  this  order  of  things.  They 
practically  went  so  far  as  to  affirm  that  no 
one  could  be  saved  outside  of  a  church  of 
the  Disciples,  or  a  church  organized  accord- 
ing to  the  primitive  model  in  its  external 
features.  Campbell  and  other  leaders  never 
gave  this  conception  any  sympathy,  and 
arrayed  themselves  on  the  side  of  a  broader, 
more  spiritual  conception. 


CHAPTER  XI 


THE  RISE  OF  INTERNAL  CONTROVERSY 

The  plan  of  Christian  union  founded  upon 
a  uniform  interpretation  of  the  Scriptures, 
as  set  forth  in  the  Declaration  and  Address 
and  as  held  and  taught  by  the  Reformers, 
did  not  insure  or  effect  unity  among  those 
who  held  it.  The  possibilities  of  disagree- 
ment lay  in  the  great  watchword  of  the 
movement:  "  Where  the  Scriptures  speak, 
we  speak;  where  they  are  silent,  we  are 
silent."  Between  the  authority  of  Scripture 
and  the  Scriptures  themselves,  always  lies 
the  interpretation  of  them.  In  the  last 
analysis,  the  authority  of  Scripture  is  the 
authority  of  the  interpretation.  There  being 
no  authoritative  interpretation  of  Scripture 
among  Protestants  who  accept  the  princi- 
ple of  private  or  free  interpretation,  there 
are  bound  to  be  differences  of  interpretation 
235 


236      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

upon  many  fundamental  teachings  of  Scrip- 
ture. Freedom  of  interpretation  was  car- 
ried to  its  fullest  extent  among  the  followers 
of  the  Campbells,  and  each  person  was 
encouraged  and  trusted  to  make  application 
of  the  rule,  a  "Thus  saith  the  Lord"  for 
every  item  of  religious  faith  and  practice. 
This  very  freedom  developed  differences  all 
through  the  early  period  between  the  ex- 
tremely literal  interpreters  and  the  more 
spiritual.  We  found  that  in  the  earliest  in- 
terpretation or  definition  of  primitive  Chris- 
tianity among  the  Reformers  the  literal 
method  prevailed  and  resulted  in  an  em- 
phasis upon  the  "order  of  things"  in  the 
primitive  church.  "The  restoration  of  the 
ancient  order  of  things  "  became  the  formula 
of  development.  But  while  Alexander 
Campbell  was  writing  that  famous  series 
of  articles  in  the  Christian  Baptist  under 
the  above  title,  he  turned  aside  in  a  separate 
article  on  "  The  Spirit  of  the  Ancient  Chris- 
tians "  to  say:   "To  have  an  ancient  order 


The  Rise  of  Internal  Controversy  237 

of  things  restored  in  due  form  without  the 
spirit  or  power  of  that  order,  would  be 
mere  mimicry,  which  we  would  rather,  and 
we  are  assured  the  primitive  saints  would 
rather,  never  see."  "If  the  spirit  of  the 
ancient  Christians  and  of  their  individual 
and  social  conduct  was  more  inquired  after, 
and  more  cultivated,  we  would  find  but 
little  trouble  in  understanding  and  display- 
ing the  ancient  order  of  things."  He  found 
this  spirit  in  the  words:  "  Lord,  what  wilt 
thou  have  me  to  do  ?" 

It  began  to  be  evident  to  the  Disciples  that 
primitive  Christianity  was  something  more 
than  an  order  of  things  in  public  worship 
and  church  organization.  The  zeal  which 
consumed  the  primitive  Christians  was  not 
directed  to  forms  of  public  worship.  The 
form  and  order  which  their  new  life  as- 
sumed were  taken  up  unconsciously  from 
the  customs  with  which  they  were  most 
familiar  as  Jews.  Their  Master's  consuming 
interest  had  been  in  the  saving  of  lost  men 


238      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

and  women,  and  he  communicated  his 
passion  to  his  followers.  The  principal 
business  of  the  primitive  church  was  the 
missionary  enterprise.  Campbell  said  in 
an  address  in  1851  that  "the  spirit  of 
Christianity  is  essentially  a  missionary 
spirit."  It  began  to  be  felt  by  the  Dis- 
ciples that  as  a  people  claiming  the  dis- 
tinction of  restoring  primitive  Christianity 
they  could  not  consistently  neglect  that 
which  was  the  essential  spirit  and  dis- 
tinguishing mark  of  the  primitive  Chris- 
tians— the  seeking  and  the  saving  of  the  lost 
in  all  lands  and  among  all  peoples.  The 
conversion  of  the  heathen  world  had  already 
become  an  enthusiasm  in  several  denomina- 
tions. Before  1840  the  Congregationalists, 
Baptists,  Methodists,  Episcopalians,  and 
Presbyterians  had  organized  societies  for 
the  proclamation  of  the  gospel  in  foreign 
lands. 

Stimulated  by  the  example  of  other  de- 
nominations, as  well  as  by  the  precept  of 


The  Rise  of  Internal  Controversy  239 

Christ  and  the  example  of  the  primitive 
church,  the  Disciples  began  to  see  that  they 
were  in  need  of  a  more  effective  form  of 
cooperation,  if  they  were  to  develop  and 
properly  use  the  spiritual  and  material 
forces  represented  in  the  rapidly  increasing 
numbers  of  members  in  their  churches.  It 
was  this  sense  of  an  increasing  responsibil- 
ity growing  out  of  an  increasing  member- 
ship which  led  to  the  formation  of  the 
American  Christian  Missionary  Society  in 
1849.  Since  1844  Alexander  Campbell  had 
been  urging  his  brethren  to  unite  in  some 
more  effective  form  of  cooperation.  There 
had  been  for  many  years  local  and  limited 
forms  of  cooperation  between  churches  in 
the  same  states  for  purposes  of  denomina- 
tional evangelization  and  education.  The 
example  of  a  wider  cooperation  for  un- 
sectarian  purposes  had  been  set  in  the 
organization  of  the  "American  Christian 
Bible  Society"  in  1845  at  Cincinnati,  Ohio, 
under  the  leadership  of  D.  S.  Burnet,  for 


240      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

the  publication  and  distribution  of  Bibles. 
The  organization  of  this  society  stirred  the 
Disciples  to  action.  Cooperation  of  the 
entire  body  in  the  great  enterprises  of 
Christian  education,  Christian  missions,  and 
Bible  circulation,  began  to  be  urged  in 
every  quarter.  But  cooperation  meant 
organization,  and  organization  meant  a 
society. 

The  first  serious  internal  controversy 
arose  on  account  of  the  organization  of  this 
first  missionary  society.  The  society  was 
opposed  on  the  ground  that  there  was 
neither  precept  nor  example  in  the  New 
Testament  for  the  organization  of  societies 
for  the  spread  of  the  gospel.  Some  of  the 
bitterest  satire  in  the  columns  of  the  Chris- 
tian  Baptist  had  been  directed  against  the 
"mercenary  schemes"  of  the  missionary, 
tract  and  Bible  societies  of  the  various  de- 
nominations. Campbell's  approval  of  the 
organization  of  the  new  society  did  not 
save  it  from  the  assaults  of  many  of  his 


The  Rise  of  Internal  Controversy  24 1 

brethren.  The  enemies  of  the  society  went 
back  to  the  Christian  Baptist  for  their  most 
effective  epithets  against  the  new  scheme, 
and  Alexander  Campbell  of  1823  was  ar- 
rayed against  Alexander  Campbell  of  1849. 
While  he  distinguished  between  the  mis- 
sionary purpose  and  the  missionary  plan 
in  his  early  diatribes,  and  aimed  them  at  the 
latter,  the  enemies  of  all  missionary  work 
applied  them  to  both  alike.  His  support  of 
the  new  society  was  frank,  open,  and  posi- 
tive, and  he  did  not  hesitate  to  accept  the 
office  and  honor  of  first  president  imposed 
upon  him  in  his  absence  by  his  brethren 
in  the  convention  at  Cincinnati  which 
created  it. 

The  struggle  for  organized  missionary 
work  among  the  Disciples  was  begun,  and 
progress  was  contested  at  every  step  by  a 
bitter  and  relentless  opposition,  which  be- 
came a  party  within  the  ranks  with  its 
leaders  and  newspapers.  The  first  leader 
of  the  anti-missionary  element  was  Jacob 


242      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

Creath,  Jr.  Scattered  throughout  the  ranks 
of  the  denomination  were  many  individuals 
and  churches  which  joined  in  the  cry  against 
"  human  innovations."  The  society  with 
its  "money  basis"  and  delegated  member- 
ship was  feared  as  the  beginning  of  apos- 
tasy from  a  pure  New  Testament  congrega- 
tionaHsm.  The  convention  which  met  to 
create  the  society  was  taxed  to  the  utmost 
in  its  ingenuity  to  avoid  the  various  rocks 
of  offense  in  the  course  before  it.  It  found 
it  impossible  to  please  everybody,  no  mat- 
ter how  hard  it  might  try.  Even  the  friends 
of  organized  cooperation  were  not  pleased 
with  some  articles  in  the  constitution, 
though  they  offered  no  objection  to  the  so- 
ciety as  such.  The  one  article  which  gave 
more  offense  than  any  other,  and  continued 
to  give  trouble  down  to  1881,  was  "Article 
111,"  which  read  as  follows:  "The  society 
shall  be  composed  of  annual  delegates,  life 
members  and  life  directors.  Any  church 
may  appoint  a  delegate  for  an  annual  con- 


The  Rise  of  Internal  Controversy  243 

tribution  of  ten  dollars.  Twenty  dollars 
paid  at  one  time  shall  be  requisite  to  consti- 
tute a  member  for  life;  and  one  hundred 
dollars  paid  at  one  time,  or  a  sum  which  in 
addition  to  any  previous  contributions  shall 
amount  to  one  hundred  dollars,  shall  be  re- 
quired to  constitute  a  director  for  life." 
This  was  the  "money  basis"  of  the  so- 
ciety and  created  the  moneyed  aristocracy  " 
so  much  feared  in  the  missionary  work  of  the 
church.  Each  church  was  invited  to  become 
an  auxiliary  to  the  society  by  making  a  con- 
tribution and  sending  a  delegate  to  the  an- 
nual convention.  When  this  invitation 
came  to  the  church  in  Connellsville,  Penn- 
sylvania, it  drew  up  a  series  of  resolutions 
against  the  society,  embodying  its  objec- 
tions. While  favoring  the  purpose  of  the 
society  to  carry  the  gospel  to  all  men,  it 
was  opposed  to  the  society  and  its  plan. 
The  second  resolution  stated  its  position  as 
follows:  "That  we  consider  the  church  of 
Jesus  Christ,  in  virtue  of  the  commission 


244      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

given  her  by  our  blessed  Lord,  the  only 
scriptural  organization  on  earth  for  the  con- 
version of  sinners  and  the  sanctification  of 
believers."  These  resolutions  became  the 
model  and  voiced  the  sentiments  of  all 
other  churches  opposed  to  the  society. 

All  the  officers  of  the  society  served 
without  salary  until  1857,  when  Benjamin 
Franklin,  as  secretary,  was  the  first  to  be 
paid  a  salary.  In  his  report  to  the  board  he 
said:  "There  has  been  strong  prejudice 
against  the  missionary  society.  This  we 
have  labored  to  counteract,  and  1  think,  to  a 
considerable  extent  it  has  abated."  After 
holding  the  office  one  year  he  was  succeeded 
by  Isaac  Errett.  From  the  time  he  severed 
his  relation  with  the  society  he  began  to  op- 
pose it,  and  opposition  in  one  point  broad- 
ened to  include  every  point,  until  he  stood 
opposed  to  the  very  idea  of  organized  mis- 
sionary work.  He  became  the  leader  of  the 
anti-missionary  forces,  and  by  voice  and 
pen,  as  editor  of  the  American  Christian 


The  Rise  of  Internal  Controversy  245 

Review,  he  menaced  and  cramped  the  work 
of  the  society  until  1870.  His  paper  be- 
came the  most  influential  next  to  the  Mil- 
lemiial  Harbinger.  He  succeeded  in  creat- 
ing a  party  among  the  Disciples  which  con- 
sistently opposed  every  agency  and  expedi- 
ency in  the  church,  from  the  missionary 
society  to  organs  and  tuning  forks,  for 
which  there  was  not  express  scriptural  pre- 
cept or  example.  This  party  was  the  log- 
ical outgrowth  of  the  literal  principle  of  in- 
terpretation and  dated  back  to  the  first  defi- 
nition of  primitive  Christianity  as  an  order 
of  things.  The  opponents  of  the  society 
forced  it  to  change  its  constitution  from 
time  to  time  until  1869,  when  it  was  forced 
to  adopt  "  The  Louisville  Plan  "  to  conciliate 
the  opposition.  Instead  of  bringing  "har- 
mony and  peace  to  the  brotherhood"  it 
brought  poverty  and  helplessness  to  the 
society,  and  in  1881,  it  was  superseded  by 
the  present  plan  which  was  a  return  to  the 
original  money  basis  of  control.    It  was 


246      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

felt  that  there  was  no  longer  use  of  trying 
to  harmonize  the  elements,  as  had  been 
done  at  the  expense  of  the  missionary  cause 
for  thirty  years,  since  the  anti-missionary 
party  had  taken  up  a  position  of  irreconci- 
lable opposition  and  was  practically  out  of 
fellowship  with  the  larger  missionary  party. 
It  could  now  afford  to  ignore  it,  which  it 
has  steadily  done  to  the  present  time,  with 
an  ever  increasing  fund  in  the  treasury. 

In  the  midst  of  the  missionary  contro- 
versy, the  slavery  question  loomed  large 
upon  the  horizon  and  disturbed  the  councils 
of  the  Disciples.  The  body  was  distributed 
over  both  the  North  and  the  South,  prob- 
ably with  a  larger  element  in  those  states 
committed  to  slaveholding  or  which  were 
divided  over  the  question.  Few  of  the  de- 
nominations escaped  the  influence  of  the 
question;  several  suffered  division  on  ac- 
count of  it.  There  had  been  unity  and  co- 
operation between  the  churches  of  both 
North  and  South  so  long  as  the  slavery 


The  Rise  of  Internal  Controversy  247 

question  was  not  forced  upon  them  for  de- 
cisive action.  When  the  Civil  War  broke 
out,  all  eyes  turned  towards  Bethany,  Vir- 
ginia, to  know  which  side  Alexander  Camp- 
bell would  take  in  the  struggle.  He  had 
defined  his  position  on  the  slavery  question 
as  early  as  1846,  and  held  that  the  relation 
of  master  and  slave  w^as  sanctioned  by  the 
New  Testament,  but  not  the  institution  as 
existing  in  America  or  any  other  country. 
He  said:  "I  have  always  been  anti-slavery, 
but  never  an  abolitionist  "—a  position  which 
many  persons  in  the  South  held,  but  which 
was  felt  to  be  inconsistent  by  the  extreme 
anti-slavery  men  of  the  North.  He  was 
opposed  to  the  Civil  War  and  all  war  as 
unchristian,  and  thought  the  question  at 
issue  ought  to  be  settled  by  arbitration. 
The  attitude  of  neutrality  which  he  assumed 
towards  the  conflict  between  North  and 
South  did  much  to  moderate  the  spirit 
among  the  Disciples  and  save  them  from 
the  division  which  was  threatening. 


248      The  Disciples  of  Christ 


The  preachers  among  the  Disciples  in 
Missouri  took  formal  action  with  respect  to 
the  conflict  by  issuing  a  circular,  "Concern- 
ing the  Duties  of  Christians  in  this  Conflict," 
in  which  they  declared  that  Christians  ought 
not  to  go  to  war.  Among  those  who  signed 
the  document  were  B.  H.  Smith,  J.  W. 
McGarvey,  T.  M.  Allen  and  T.  P.  Haley. 
There  were  three  questions  under  discussion 
in  religious  circles  at  the  time:  first,  as  to 
whether  a  Christian  should  go  to  war; 
second,  as  to  whether  the  southern  states 
had  a  right  to  secede;  and  third,  as  to 
whether  slavery  should  be  abolished.  It 
was  possible  for  many  Christian  people  to 
take  refuge  behind  the  first,  and  remain 
non-committal  with  respect  to  the  others. 
The  question  found  its  way  into  the  con- 
vention of  the  missionary  society  in  1861, 
at  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  in  a  resolution  by  J.  P. 
Robinson  of  Ohio,  calling  upon  "  the  breth- 
ren everywhere  to  do  all  in  their  power  to 
sustain  the  proper  and  constitutional  au- 


The  Rise  of  Internal  Controversy  249 

thority  of  the  Union."  The  resolution  was 
lost.  Reports  began  to  be  circulated  that 
the  Disciples  and  the  missionary  society  in 
particular  were  "to  a  certain  degree  disloyal 
to  the  government  of  the  United  States." 
At  the  meeting  of  the  society  in  1863  reso- 
lutions were  adopted  declaring  allegiance  to 
the  government  and  tendering  sympathies 
to  the  soldiers  in  the  field  who  were  de- 
fending the  country  from  the  attempt  of 
armed  traitors  to  overthrow  the  govern- 
ment. This  action  cut  off  from  the  society 
the  support  of  the  southern  churches,  and 
rendered  it  comparatively  bankrupt.  When 
President  Lincoln  proclaimed  the  emanci- 
pation of  the  slaves  in  1862  the  bond  which 
bound  the  northern  and  southern  churches 
together  was  strained  almost  to  the  break- 
ing point.  But  it  did  not  break,  and  the 
war  closed  with  the  denomination  in  the 
North  and  South  united  in  the  bonds  of 
Christian  love  and  service.  It  was  cause 
for  unfeigned  rejoicing,  and  was  due  in 


250      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

large  measure  to  the  Christian  wisdom  of 
the  members  in  the  two  sections,  the  moder- 
ation of  the  leaders,  but  more  to  the  con- 
gregational form  of  government  which 
prevented  any  action  in  the  body  as  a 
whole. 

The  organ  controversy  was  the  missionary 
controversy  in  a  new  form,  for  both  grew 
out  of  the  opposition  to  human  innovations 
in  the  work  and  worship  of  the  church. 
Most  churches  were  without  musical  instru- 
ments in  their  public  worship  down  to  the 
middle  of  the  century.  The  controversy 
broke  out  in  i860  through  the  introduction 
of  a  melodeon  into  the  services  of  the  church 
at  Midway,  Kentucky,  then  in  charge  of 
Dr.  L.  L.  Pinkerton.  Benjamin  Franklin  as 
editor  of  the  American  Christian  Review, 
led  in  the  attack  upon  the  innovation.  He 
was  opposed  to  it  as  ministering  to  the 
pride  and  worldliness  of  the  churches,  as 
without  the  sanction  of  New  Testament 
precept  or  example,  and  consequently  as 


The  Rise  of  Internal  Controversy  25 1 

unscriptural  and  sinful.  Franklin  and  those 
who  shared  his  view  refused  to  worship  or 
hold  membership  in  a  church  that  used  an 
organ.  Through  his  influence  the  old  ene- 
mies of  the  missionary  society  were  lined 
up  against  the  organ.  The  thing  that  in- 
tensified the  warfare  was  the  element  of 
conscience  which  entered  into  it.  The 
organ  party  treated  it  as  a  question  of  ex- 
pediency on  which  there  should  be  forbear- 
ance and  liberty.  The  anti-party  treated  it 
as  a  matter  of  principle.  With  the  gradual 
improvement  in  the  music  of  the  churches 
through  the  use  of  an  organ  in  leading,  and 
the  introduction  of  choirs,  the  older  con- 
gregational method  began  to  appear  rude 
and  old-fashioned,  and  offended  the  culti- 
vated and  modern  tastes  of  the  younger 
members.  As  the  churches  introduced  the 
organ  more  widely,  the  greater  need  there 
seemed  to  be  for  it,  and  the  progressive, 
modern  elements  grew  impatient  of  the  ob- 
jections of  the  more  conservative  and  forced 


252      The  Disciples  o{  Christ 


it  into  the  worship  against  their  consent. 
There  were  many  divisions  in  churches,  and 
it  was  not  uncommon  to  see  two  churches 
in  a  community — the  one  using  the  organ, 
the  other  without  it — but  alike  in  all  other 
respects. 

Isaac  Errett  became  the  leader  of  the  pro- 
gressive party,  and  through  the  pages  of 
the  Christian  Standard,  after  its  establish- 
ment in  1866,  favored  and  promoted  every 
helpful  expedient  in  the  work  of  the  church. 
It  was  he  who  fought  the  battle  of  the  mis- 
sionary society,  and  reminded  his  brethren 
in  1867  that  the  Standard  was  the  only 
weekly  paper  advocating  missionary  so- 
cieties. Against  him  were  the  Gospel  Ad- 
vocate and  the  American  Christian  Review, 
and  to  them  was  added  in  1869  the  Apostolic 
Times  under  the  editorship  of  Moses  E.  Lard, 
L.  B.  Wilkes,  Robert  Graham,  W.  H.  Hop- 
son,  and  J.  W.  McGarvey,  established  with 
the  avowed  purpose  of  resisting  the  tide  set- 
ting in  favor  of  modern  methods  and  or- 


The  Rise  of  Internal  Controversy  253 

ganizations  in  church  work.  The  new  paper 
opened  its  batteries  at  once  upon  the  Chris- 
tian Standard  to  which  Errett  replied : 
"Our  editorial  brethren  of  the  Times  are, 
with  us,  guilty  of  a  great  innovation  in 
publishing  a  weekly  religious  newspaper; 
and  if  they  do  this  as  children  of  God,  they 
are  doing  what  they  well  know  has  neither 
a  divine  command  nor  an  approved  prece- 
dent to  support  it.  When  they  preach  they 
go  into  a  meeting  house,  which  is  an  inno- 
vation, and  give  out  a  hymn,  which  is  an 
innovation,  and  this  hymn  is  sung  to  a 
tune,  which  is  an  innovation,  by  the  aid  of 
a  tune-book  and  a  tune-fork,  which  are 
innovations." 

As  a  result  of  these  differences,  divisions 
and  separations  took  place  in  churches  be- 
tween i860  and  1880  which  formed  a  sepa- 
rate party,  that  has  gone  on  establishing 
papers  and  schools  and  churches.  They 
regard  the  Disciples  as  corrupt  and  apostate 
and  will  have  no  fellowship  with  them. 


254      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

They  insist  upon  the  abandonment  of  all 
missionary  organizations  and  expedients  in 
church  work,  as  a  condition  of  fellowship 
and  cooperation  with  them.  They  sub- 
mitted a  "Memorial"  to  the  Convention  of 
the  Disciples  which  met  in  Nashville  in 
1892,  calling  upon  them  to  "abandon  their 
organizations  that  found  no  necessity  or 
recognition  in  apostolic  times,  for  the  sake 
of  union  and  cooperation."  Their  strength 
lies  principally  in  Indiana,  Kentucky,  Ten- 
nessee, Arkansas,  and  Texas.  They  have 
planted  missions  among  the  Indians,  and  in 
Turkey  and  Japan,  which  they  support  by 
voluntary  contributions  without  the  media- 
tion of  a  "human  society." 

In  these  controversies  the  scheme  of  Chris- 
tian union  as  advocated  by  the  Disciples 
received  its  second  critical  test,  and  met 
with  its  second  failure.  Unity  was  wrecked 
in  both  cases  upon  the  same  rock — a  literal 
application  of  the  principle,  "Where  the 
Scriptures  speak,  we  speak;  where  they  are 


The  Rise  of  Internal  Controversy  255 


silent,  we  are  silent,"  to  the  interpretation 
of  primitive  Christianity.  The  failure  to 
preserve  unity  within  their  own  ranks  was 
a  serious  blow  to  the  Disciples,  but  it  did 
not  shake  their  confidence  in  the  principle 
of  Christian  union.  They  went  on  preach- 
ing union  upon  the  Bible  alone  while  their 
churches  were  dividing  over  the  interpreta- 
tion of  the  Bible.  They  still  believed  that 
the  separation  of  matters  of  faith  from  mat- 
ters of  opinion  was  a  true  principle  of  unity, 
although  they  were  unable  to  make  a  sepa- 
ration satisfactory  to  both  parties.  The 
anti-organ  party  said  the  use  of  an  organ  in 
public  worship  was  a  matter  of  faith,  the 
organ  party  said  it  was  a  matter  of  opinion 
and  expediency.  They  could  not  agree  and 
separated. 

At  this  juncture  Isaac  Errett  appeared 
upon  the  stage  of  action,  full  of  wisdom 
and  experience,  with  a  timely  message  to 
the  confused  and  distracted  body.  He  had 
been  for  several  years  one  of  the  trusted 


256      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

and  honored  leaders  among  his  brethren; 
and  as  preacher,  writer  and  thinker,  as  sec- 
retary of  the  missionary  society  in  its  most 
critical  period,  as  teacher  in  Hiram  College, 
as  co-editor  of  the  Harbinger,  he  had  demon- 
strated that  he  possessed  the  essential  ele- 
ments of  leadership.  He  had  already  held 
every  position  of  trust  and  honor  among  the 
Disciples,  before  he  was  made  first  editor  of 
the  Christian  Standard  in  1866.  The  year 
that  the  Standard  was  established  was  the 
year  in  which  the  great  leader,  Alexander 
Campbell,  died;  and  by  common  consent 
of  his  brethren,  after  they  had  recovered 
from  the  first  shock  of  the  loss,  Isaac 
Errett  took  his  place  of  leadership.  He 
sounded  a  new  note  when  he  announced 
his  purposes  as  editor  to  be:  "(i)  the 
turning  of  the  world  to  Christ;  (2)  the 
union  of  believers  in  the  fellowship  of  the 
gospel;  (3)  the  education  of  Christians  into 
a  nobler  spiritual  life." 
The  Disciples  had  been  progressively  re- 


The  Rise  of  Internal  Controversy  257 

storing  primitive  Christianity  as  they  pro- 
gressively grasped  it  as  a7i  order  of  things, 
then  as  a  missionary  enterprise  ;  but  it  was 
left  for  Isaac  Errett  to  propose  to  restore 
primitive  Christianity  as  a  spirit  of  things. 
He  began  to  emphasize  the  spirit  over 
against  the  letter.  Unity  based  on  the  letter 
of  the  New  Testament  had  failed;  he  saw 
new  hope  for  a  unity  based  on  the  spirit  of 
the  New  Testament.  He  saw  that  the 
Disciples  could  go  no  further  in  their  em- 
phasis upon  the  letter  of  Christianity  than 
the  anti-organ  party  had  gone.  As  literal- 
ists  they  were  more  consistent,  but  not  per- 
fectly consistent,  for  they  also  used  many 
innovations  in  public  worship.  The  ex- 
travagances of  this  party  produced  a  reac- 
tion in  the  direction  of  a  more  spiritual 
definition  of  Christianity,  and  gave  the 
principle  of  union  a  new  meaning.  He 
signalized  the  change  of  emphasis  that  was 
called  for  by  the  experiences  of  the  past  by 


258      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

saying  in  1868:  "Let  the  bond  of  union 
among  the  baptized  be  Christian  character 
in  place  of  orthodoxy — right  doing  in  place 
of  exact  thinking,'* 


CHAPTER  XII 


MISSIONARY  ORGANIZATION 

By  1850  the  Disciples  of  Christ  had  grown 
to  be  a  body  numbering  nearly  200,000,  and 
were  distributed  widely  throughout  the 
states.  On  account  of  the  strict  independ- 
ency of  church  government  among  them, 
cooperative  work  was  very  slowly  devel- 
oped, and  often  under  severe  opposition, 
from  fear  of  creating  ecclesiastical  organiza- 
tions likely  to  become  a  menace  to  freedom. 
The  various  missionary,  Bible,  and  educa- 
tional enterprises  that  had  sprung  up  among 
them  grew  out  of  individual  or  local  initia- 
tive. They  would  countenance  nothing  but 
the  freest  and  loosest  kind  of  cooperation. 
The  widest  cooperations  thus  far  were  those 
of  state  churches  for  work  in  their  own  bor- 
ders. But  there  was  work  to  be  done  be- 
yond the  borders  of  states  for  which  there 
259 


26o      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

was  no  provision.  Some  enterprises,  such 
as  the  educational  and  foreign  missionary, 
which  were  general,  could  only  be  carried 
on  by  general  support.  The  advisability  of 
providing  an  agency  for  doing  something  for 
the  general  causes  of  education,  missions, 
and  Bible  circulation,  was  discussed  for 
many  months  in  the  papers  and  finally  is- 
sued in  a  call  for  a  general  convention,  to 
be  held  at  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  in  October, 
1849. 

Of  the  one  hundred  and  fifty-five  dele- 
gates which  composed  the  convention, 
some  were  appointed  at  state  meetings  of 
churches  to  represent  the  various  states, 
some  were  appointed  by  local  churches, 
and  others  came  on  their  own  motion.  No 
one  had  any  authority  to  do  anything  that 
would  bind  the  churches  sending  them. 
They  were  simply  sent  as  representatives  to 
confer  and  suggest,  but  if  they  organized 
no  one  could  be  a  member  of  the  organiza- 
tion but  those  who  voluntarily  joined. 


Missionary  Organization  261 

After  wrestling  with  the  problem  of  the 
scope  of  their  business  as  a  convention, 
they  finally  settled  to  the  serious  task  of 
missionary  organization.  They  started  in 
to  settle  a  variety  of  questions  troubling  the 
churches,  such  as  the  ordination  of  minis- 
ters, the  discipline  of  unworthy  ministers, 
the  organization  of  Sunday-schools,  and  the 
publication  of  a  Sunday-school  library. 
During  the  five  days  of  the  convention  they 
discussed  fifty-eight  different  resolutions 
upon  a  wide  range  of  subjects  and  interests, 
many  of  which  they  concluded  did  not  be- 
long to  their  business.  The  one  thing  which 
came  out  of  their  deliberations  was  the  or- 
ganization of  the  American  Christian  Mis- 
sionary Society.  They  drafted  a  constitution 
providing  for  a  board  of  managers  for  the 
foreign  field  and  a  board  for  the  home  field; 
for  annual  delegates,  life-members  and  life- 
directors,  according  to  the  amount  of  money 
paid  into  the  treasury.  The  following  lead- 
ing men  were  present  in  the  convention: 


262      The  Disciples  of  Christ 


D.  S.  Burnet  (chairman  of  convention), 
W.  K.  Pendleton,  John  O'Kane,  Ehjah  Good- 
win, James  Challen,  John  T.  Johnson,  L.  L. 
Pinkerton,  Benjamin  Franklin,  J.  J.  Moss, 
T.  J.  Melish,  Walter  Scott,  B.  U.  Watkins, 
and  James  Mathes.  The  society  was  regu- 
larly incorporated  in  the  state  of  Ohio  in 
1850. 

The  first  work  which  the  society  under- 
took was  the  sending  of  Dr.  J.  T.  Barclay 
as  a  missionary  to  Jerusalem.  This  field 
was  selected  for  reasons  that  were  largely 
sentimental.  The  mission  was  interrupted 
in  1854,  and  finally  abandoned  during  the 
Civil  War,  on  the  ground  that,  "The  field 
was  as  sterile  as  the  rock  on  which  Jerusalem 
is  built."  The  only  other  foreign  mission 
undertaken  by  the  society  was  in  Jamaica 
in  1858:  and  after  the  organization  of  the 
Foreign  Christian  Missionary  Society  in 
1875  it  confined  its  operations  exclusively 
to  the  home  field.  The  offering  for  the  first 
year,  under  James  Challen  as  secretary,  was 


Missionary  Organization  263 

12,496.79;  the  largest  offering  between  1850 
and  1884,  was  in  the  year  i860,  under  Isaac 
Errett  as  secretary,  when  $15,831.25  were 
contributed;  the  largest  offering  in  the  his- 
tory of  the  society  was  in  1899,  under  Ben- 
jamin L.  Smith  as  secretary,  when  $115,- 
004.00  were  contributed.  The  total  amount 
of  money  raised  to  1903  was  $1,383,61 1. 1 1. 
It  has  organized  through  its  missionaries 
2,848  churches,  and  has  brought  138,960 
persons  into  the  churches  by  baptism. 
During  1904,  $85,755.96  were  contributed, 
225  churches  were  organized,  and  16,861 
persons  were  baptized  by  its  missionaries. 
Its  work  lies  principally  in  the  states  where 
the  Disciples  have  few  churches,  and  in  the 
larger  cities.  In  1903  the  convention  created 
a  Bureau  of  Evangelization  under  the  man- 
agement of  the  society,  to  devote  its  atten- 
tion to  evangelism  in  the  cities,  to  reenforce 
the  general  evangelism  of  the  body  by  pro- 
ducing a  literature  and  holding  assemblies 
on  modern  evangelistic  methods.  Besides 


264      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

the  general  society,  each  state  has  its  own 
local  missionary  society  for  work  within 
the  state,  which  should  be  included  in  home 
missionary  work.  The  amount  of  money 
raised  by  these  state  societies  for  1904  was 
$226,633.67. 

The  American  Christian  Missionary  So- 
ciety was  the  pioneer  in  the  struggle  for  or- 
ganized missionary  work  among  the  Disci- 
ples, and  consequently  bore  all  the  blows 
and  suffered  all  the  experiments  incident  to 
pioneer  work.  By  1874,  when  the  next 
general  society  was  organized,  the  idea  of 
missionary  work  through  organized  societies 
had  won  a  place  in  the  program  of  the  Dis- 
ciples. When  the  severest  of  its  battles 
were  over,  the  era  of  specialization  in  mis- 
sionary work  began  in  the  organization  of 
the  Christian  Woman's  Board  of  Missions. 
This  society  was  organized  at  the  General 
Convention  of  the  Disciples  in  Cincinnati, 
in  1874,  to  utilize  the  consecration  and 
services  of  the  women  of  the  churches  in 


Missionary  Organization 


cultivating  a  missionary  spirit,  encouraging 
missionary  efforts,  disseminating  missionary 
intelligence,  and  securing  systematic  con- 
tributions for  missionary  purposes.  With 
Mrs.  C.  N.  Pearre  originated  the  sugges- 
tion of  an  organization  among  the  women 
of  the  Disciples  for  missionary  purposes. 
To  Isaac  Errett  and  his  interest  and  ad- 
vocacy, belongs  the  credit  for  its  actual 
organization.  The  plan  was  to  band  to- 
gether the  women  of  the  churches  in 
•*  auxiliary  societies  "  which  should  become 
feeders  of  the  society's  treasury.  It  has 
demonstrated  the  value  of  systematic  giv- 
ing, for  it  has  taken  the  "monthly  dues" 
of  ten  cents  from  each  of  the  members  of 
its  auxiliaries  and  has  swelled  them  from  a 
total  contribution  of  $1,200.35  the  first  year, 
to  $167,084.72  in  1904.  The  total  receipts 
for  thirty  years  amount  to  $1,468,721.73. 
It  supported  two  missionaries  the  first  year 
and  287  missionaries  in  1904.  It  had  a  total 
membership  of  41,211  women  in  its  aux- 


266      The  Disciples  of  Christ 


iliaries  in  1904,  through  which  it  reached 
600,000  women  in  the  churches.  Its  field 
of  work  covers  all  forms  of  missionary 
service — educational,  medical,  and  evan- 
gelistic— both  home  and  foreign — among 
women  and  children.  It  is  doing  work  in 
thirty  states  of  the  Union,  in  Mexico,  Porto 
Rico,  Jamaica,  and  India.  It  has  500  chil- 
dren in  its  orphanages,  3,000  pupils  in  its 
schools,  and  treats  thousands  of  sick  in  its 
hospitals.  The  Society  has  developed  a 
new  form  of  missionary  service,  and  was 
the  first  to  introduce  Bible  instruction  into 
state  universities.  The  inauguration  and 
development  of  this  work  in  its  first  stages 
were  due  to  the  leadership  of  C.  A.  Young 
and  H.  L.  Willett.  The  later  development 
has  been  carried  on  under  the  leadership  of 
Geo.  P.  Coler,  W.  M.  Forrest,  and  W.  C. 
Payne.  The  first  Bible  Chair  was  estab- 
lished in  1893  at  the  University  of  Michigan 
(Ann  Arbor);  the  second  Chair,  in  1899  at 
the  University  of  Virginia  (Charlottsville); 


Missionary  Organization  267 

the  third  Chair,  in  1900  at  the  University  of 
Calcutta,  India;  the  fourth  Chair,  in  1901  at 
the  University  of  Kansas  (Lawrence).  The 
Chairs  at  Ann  Arbor  and  Charlottsville  have 
been  endowed  with  permanent  funds  of 
$25,000  each.  These  Bible  Chairs  provide 
instruction  in  the  English  Bible  for  students 
in  the  state  universities,  and  have  not  only 
served  the  purpose  of  placing  the  lit- 
erature and  history  of  the  Bible  alongside 
of  the  Greek  and  Latin  literatures  for  the 
intellectual  and  moral  benefit  of  the  students, 
but  they  have  served  to  foster  the  re- 
ligious life  in  many  young  persons  and 
to  turn  some  to  ministerial  and  mission- 
ary service.  The  multitudes  of  young 
men  and  young  women  in  the  state 
institutions  without  religious  instruction 
in  their  courses  of  study,  proved  to  be  a 
ripened  field  for  the  society  which  it 
has  been  quick  to  appreciate.  As  rapidly 
as  possible  it  is  projecting  the  work 
into  all  of  the  larger  state  universities. 


268      The  Disciples  of  Christ 


Other  denominations  are  following  the  ex- 
ample. 

In  the  further  development  of  specialized 
missionary  activity  the  Foreign  Christian 
Missionary  Society  was  organized  in  1875, 
to  do  work  solely  in  heathen  lands. 
Opposition  to  societies  had  prevented  the 
American  Society  from  doing  anything 
either  at  home  or  abroad,  but  the  wisdom 
of  specialization  and  division  of  the  field 
to  utilize  the  effectiveness  of  the  foreign 
appeal  was  recognized,  and  resulted  in  the 
creation  of  the  Foreign  Society  at  the  Con- 
vention of  the  Disciples  at  Louisville,  in 
1875.  The  leading  spirits  in  this  new  enter- 
prise were  Isaac  Errett,  W.  T.  Moore,  B.  B. 
Tyler,  Thomas  Munnell,  Robert  Moffett, 
A.  I.  Hobbs,  F.  M.  Green,  J.  S.  Lamar,  and 
W.  S.  Dickinson.  Its  first  president  was 
Isaac  Errett;  its  second  C.  L.  Loos,  and  its 
third  A.  McLean.  Its  official  management 
and  financial  basis  are  similar  to  the  Ameri- 
can Society.    It  is  an  independent,  volun- 


Missionary  Organization  269 

tary  society,  and  looks  for  support  to  the 
friends  of  foreign  missions  among  the 
churches.  So  indifferent  were  the  Disciples 
to  the  foreign  missionary  interests  at  first 
that  the  society  was  unable  to  find  men  to 
go  to  the  foreign  field.  Its  first  work  was 
done  in  England;  its  second  field  was  Den- 
mark and  the  Scandinavian  countries;  its 
third  field  was  Paris,  France;  while  the  first 
work  among  distinctly  non-Christian  peo- 
ples was  begun  in  Turkey  in  1879.  India 
was  entered  in  1882.  In  1904  the  society 
was  doing  work  in  India,  Japan,  China, 
Turkey,  Africa,  Denmark,  Norway,  Sweden, 
England,  Cuba,  Hawaiian  Islands,  Philip- 
pine Islands,  and  Thibet.  The  income  of 
the  society  the  first  year  was  $1,706.35;  in 
1904  the  income  was  $211,  318.  The  total 
amount  received  by  the  society  since  its  or- 
ganization is  $2,244,151.  The  whole  num- 
ber of  missionaries  in  the  service  of  the 
society  at  the  present  time  is  143,  and  of 
native  helpers  295,  making  a  total  mission- 


lyo      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

ary  force  of  438.  The  annual  income  of 
the  Foreign  Society  exceeds  that  of  any 
other  missionary  society  among  the  Dis- 
ciples. Within  three  years  it  had  out- 
stripped the  pioneer  American  Society  and 
has  gone  on  steadily  increasing  its  receipts, 
taking  the  lead  of  all  others  as  the  favored 
missionary  activity  of  the  denomination. 
It  has  set  the  mark  to  which  all  others  have 
aimed,  and  it  has  helped  others  up  as  it  has 
gone  up  the  ascending  scale.  This  is  prob- 
ably due  in  large  measure  to  the  advantage 
of  an  ideal  and  persuasive  appeal,  of  which 
it  has  had  the  exclusive  use;  but  in  some 
measure  to  the  time  of  the  year  at  which  it 
makes  its  appeal  to  the  churches.  It  reaps 
the  benefit  of  the  year's  first  missionary 
offering,  the  first  Sunday  in  March.  But 
no  account  of  the  society's  success  would 
be  complete  which  did  not  take  into  ac- 
count the  wisdom  and  consecrated  leader- 
ship of  A.  McLean,  its  secretary  for  eighteen 
years  and  its  president  since  1900. 


Missionary  Organization  271 

In  the  course  of  its  work  the  American 
Society  encountered  one  serious  need  of  the 
churches  with  which  it  dealt — the  need  of 
houses  of  worship  as  a  condition  of  their 
permanence  and  highest  efficiency.  Ap- 
peals for  loans  of  money  to  help  them  build 
frequently  came  to  the  secretary  from 
churches  too  weak  to  undertake  it  alone. 
This  led  to  a  recommendation  by  Robert 
Moffett,  the  secretary,  to  the  convention  of 
1883,  that  a  Church  Extension  Fund  be  cre- 
ated by  the  Board  to  be  loaned  to  churches 
needing  help  to  build.  A  special  committee 
under  the  Board  was  created  to  have  this 
work  in  charge.  The  receipts  the  first  year 
amounted  to  $2,105,  and  by  1887,  when  a 
secretary  was  appointed  to  devote  all  of  his 
time  to  the  work,  the  fund  amounted  to 
$5,648.83.  A  regular  Board  of  Church  Ex- 
tension was  created  in  1888,  and  was 
located  at  Kansas  City,  Mo.  The  receipts 
of  the  Board  the  first  year  of  its  history 
were  $2,105;  in  1904,  under  George  W. 


272      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

Muckley,  as  secretary,  they  were  $58,- 
988.30.  The  total  amount  in  the  fund  at 
the  last  report  (1904)  was  $435,183.70.  It 
has  assisted  in  building  821  churches  during 
its  existence.  With  this  fund  many 
struggling  churches  have  been  helped  to 
larger  life  and  not  a  few  actually  saved 
from  death.  It  has  stepped  in  many  times 
to  save  a  valuable  property  to  a  church  that 
has  met  with  temporary  reverses  while 
carrying  a  building  debt.  In  1892  it  in- 
augurated the  policy  of  going  into  places  of 
strategic  importance  and  buying  ground  in 
growing  centres  to  be  held  for  future  church 
building  purposes.  In  1904  the  Board  was 
holding  lots  in  commanding  locations  in 
fifty-six  cities  of  the  Union.  During  its  en- 
tire history  it  has  lost  on  uncollectable  debts 
but  I563,  and  has  handled  in  its  operations 
$828,454.29. 

The  more  benevolent  side  of  Christian 
work  was  not  begun  by  the  Disciples  as  an 
organized  national  movement  until  1895,  in 


Missionary  Organization  273 

the  organization  of  the  Board  of  Ministerial 
ReHef.  This  work  owes  its  inauguration 
to  A.  M.  Atkinson,  a  Christian  business 
man,  who  was  its  first  secretary  and  gave 
himself  to  its  promotion  until  his  death  in 
1899.  It  has  for  its  field  of  service  the  care 
of  disabled  and  aged  ministers,  their  widows 
and  orphans.  While  the  ministry  among 
the  Disciples  has  never  received  generous 
or  even  ample  support,  yet  there  has  not 
been  any  unusual  distress  among  them. 
The  compensation  of  the  early  preach- 
ers was  notoriously,  if  not  infamously, 
small,  and  the  majority  were  obliged  to  en- 
gage in  business  to  eke  out  a  living.  Alex- 
ander Campbell  had  decried  the  salaried 
clergy  "as  a  part  of  the  corruption  of  the 
popular  systems  of  religion  until  the  accept- 
ance of  compensation  for  services  on  the 
part  of  ministers  was  looked  upon  as  a  deg- 
radation of  the  calling.  As  a  result  of  the 
early  tendency  to  lower  the  ministerial  quali- 
fication, and  admit  men  to  the  ministry 


2/4      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

without  education  or  training,  and  the  early 
practice  of  allowing  the  minister  to  look  out 
for  himself  in  some  business  calling  along 
with  his  preaching,  the  ministry  among  the 
Disciples  has  been  the  most  poorly  paid  of 
any  of  the  denominations.  Yet  the  denomi- 
nation did  nothing  to  provide  for  the  period 
of  disability  in  the  lives  of  its  ministers  until 
1895,  and  has  not  yet  provided  for  honora- 
ble retirement  under  sickness  or  advanced 
age,  such  as  other  denominations  have 
done.  The  Board  of  Ministerial  Relief  is 
poorly  supported  and  does  not  have  more 
than  $10,000  a  year  to  devote  to  its  work. 
In  1904  its  income  amounted  to  $1 1,562. 

The  National  Benevolent  Association  was 
organized  in  1886,  and  did  work  principally 
in  St.  Louis,  Mo.;  it  did  not  become 
national  in  its  activities  until  about  1901 
when  it  appointed  a  general  secretary  to 
urge  its  cause  on  behalf  of  the  orphaned 
young  and  the  aged  upon  the  entire  de- 
nomination.   Since  then  it  has  rapidly  con- 


Missionary  Organization  275 

solidated  the  local  state  benevolent  enter- 
prises of  the  Disciples  under  its  auspices, 
and  has  increased  its  income  from  $85  the 
first  year,  to  $77,040.28  in  1904.  The  as- 
sociation supports  two  old  peoples'  homes, 
one  at  Jacksonville,  Illinois,  and  one  at  East 
Aurora,  New  York;  a  babes'  home  and 
free  hospital,  at  St.  Louis,  Mo. ;  and  orphan- 
ages at  St.  Louis,  Mo.,  Cleveland,  Ohio, 
Dallas,  Texas,  and  Loveland,  Colorado. 
The  association  is  entirely  under  the  man- 
agement of  Christian  women. 

The  Disciples  have  from  time  to  time  un- 
dertaken the  work  of  education  among  the 
negroes  of  the  South.  A  beginning  was 
made  in  a  mission  to  the  Freedmen  at  the 
close  of  the  Civil  War.  The  Southern  Chris- 
tian Institute  was  organized  in  1875  and 
finally  established  near  Edwards,  Miss.,  in 
1882.  The  Board  of  Negro  Evangelization 
and  Education  was  organized  in  1890;  C.  C. 
Smith  was  appointed  secretary  in  1891; 
the  Board  was  merged  with  the  American 


276      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

Society  in  1898;  and  in  1900  it  was  taken 
under  the  care  of  the  Ctiristian  Woman's 
Board  of  Missions,  as  part  of  the  work  of 
that  society.  It  supports  four  schools  in 
the  South  for  the  education  of  negroes,  and 
for  the  training  of  negro  ministers. 

A  Board  of  Education  was  organized  in 
1894  and  has  struggled  for  ten  years  to 
make  a  place  for  itself  in  the  sympathies  of 
the  people  and  in  the  missionary  calendar 
of  the  churches,  with  some  success.  The 
cause  of  education  has  not  kept  pace  with 
the  development  of  the  missionary  enter- 
prises of  the  Disciples. 

The  missionary  development  of  the  Dis- 
ciples becomes  really  impressive  when  it  is 
remembered  that  in  1873  there  was  but  one 
society  with  an  income  of  $4,159,  contrib- 
uted by  a  body  numbering  450,000  communi- 
cants; while  in  1904  there  were  seven  or 
eight  societies — missionary,  benevolent,  and 
educational — with  an  income  of  $661,737, 
contributed  by  a  body  numbering  1,200,000. 


CHAPTER  XIII 


EVANGELISM,  JOURNALISM,  EDUCATION,  AND 
CHURCH  GROWTH 

We  have  seen  how  one  current  of  the 
movement  arose  out  of  an  evangelism  in 
1803,  and  how  the  main  current  issued  in 
an  evangelism  about  1827.  From  1809  to 
1827  the  Campbells  had  established  but  two 
or  three  churches  through  their  own  efforts, 
and  these  out  of  persons  already  members 
of  churches;  but  as  soon  as  Walter  Scott 
made  the  discovery  of  the  ancient  gos- 
pel "  and  threw  himself  into  its  proclama- 
tion in  1827,  new  churches  sprang  up  as  if 
by  magic.  Stone  and  his  fellow  preachers 
were  evangelists  to  begin  with  and  swept 
rapidly  through  the  states  converting  per- 
sons and  constituting  churches.  By  1832 
the  Disciples  were  confirmed  in  their  evan- 
gelistic habits  through  coalition  with  the 
277 


278      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

Stone  movement.  Every  preacher  was  an 
evangelist.  The  aim  of  every  sermon  was 
to  produce  immediate  conviction  in  the  un- 
converted among  the  hearers,  and  no  meet- 
ing closed  without  giving  convicted  and 
penitent  persons  an  opportunity  to  make  a 
public  confession  of  their  faith  in  Christ. 
The  process  of  conversion  was  completed 
by  an  immersion  of  the  person,  after  which 
he  was  received  to  membership  in  the 
church,  by  the  "  right  hand  of  fellowship." 

This  simple  and  clearly  defined  evangel- 
istic program,  obtained  from  the  practice  of 
the  apostles  as  recorded  in  the  Acts  of 
Apostles,  was  learned  and  followed  by 
every  preacher  from  that  day  to  this.  It 
made  every  preacher  and  church  an  enlist- 
ment agency.  They  perfected  in  their 
method  and  manner  of  preaching,  as  well 
as  in  their  treatment  of  inquirers  and  peni- 
tents, an  evangelism  which  was  both  in- 
stantaneous and  effective.  The  point  at 
which  many  evangelisms  break  down  is  in 


Evangelism,  Journalism,  Education  279 

producing  assurance  in  the  penitent.  A 
doctrine  of  definite,  immediate,  and  acces- 
sible assurance  of  salvation  underlay  their 
"plan  of  salvation,"  and  brought  imme- 
diate relief  to  burdened  souls.  They  taught 
inquiring  sinners  that  forgiveness  was  to 
be  obtained  by  obedience  to  certain  com- 
mands. The  commands  of  the  gospel  were: 
believe,  repent  and  be  baptized;  and  the 
promises  were:  the  remission  of  sins,  the 
gift  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  eternal  life. 
The  efficiency  of  this  plan  as  an  evangelism 
was  that  the  person  could  put  himself 
through  the  process  of  obedience,  and  need 
not  wait  for  the  Spirit  to  move  him  or  God 
to  elect  him.  He  moved  himself,  he  elected 
himself  to  eternal  life  through  faith.  The 
blessings  promised  would  as  surely  follow 
obedience,  as  effect  follows  cause.  If  an 
inquirer  asked,  "What  must  I  do  to  be 
saved.?"  the  answer  was  ready:  Believe, 
repent  and  be  baptized.  It  was  thus  that 
the  apostles  preached  and  dealt  with  peni- 


28o      The  Disciples  ot'  Christ 

tent  souls,  as  in  the  case  of  Peter  on  the 
day  of  Pentecost,  and  of  Philip  with  the 
eunuch.  These  are  the  so-called  "first 
principles"  which  have  played  so  large  a 
part  in  the  preaching  and  writing  of  the 
Disciples  ;  they  are  simply  the  primitive, 
apostolic  evangelism  reproduced  in  the 
preaching  of  to-day.  The  one  book  with 
which  their  preachers  have  been  more  fa- 
miliar than  any  other  is  the  Acts  of  Apostles 
— a  book  illustrating  the  methods  of  the 
primitive  evangelists. 

With  this  evangelistic  method  in  mind 
one  does  not  have  far  to  seek  for  an  expla- 
nation of  the  rapid  growth  of  the  Disciples 
through  all  of  their  history.  Minister  and 
evangelist  were  for  several  decades  almost 
synonymous  terms.  The  Disciples  have 
always  regarded  themselves  as  specialists 
in  the  doctrine  and  machinery  of  conver- 
sion. Their  ministry  has  always  been  an 
evangelistic,  recruiting  ministry,  whether 
itinerant  or  settled.    They  have  always 


Evangelism,  Journalism,  Education  281 

vied  with  one  another  in  their  efforts  to 
excel  as  winners  of  converts;  and  the  de- 
nomination has  stimulated  this  talent  in  its 
ministers  by  bestowing  special  honor  upon 
its  successful  achievement.  The  conse- 
quence is  that  the  denomination  has  grown 
rapidly  from  the  first,  and  continues  to 
grow. 

With  the  increase  of  the  churches  in 
members  and  wealth,  the  pastoral  side  of 
the  ministry  was  developed  to  meet  the 
needs  of  Christian  nurture,  local  church 
development,  and  social  service.  The  fol- 
lowing men  distinguished  themselves  as 
pastors  in  the  early  period  of  the  pastoral 
ministry  :  D.  S.  Burnet,  James  Challen, 
W.  H.  Hopson,  L.  L.  Pinkerton,  D.  P.  Hen- 
derson, L.  B.  Wilkes,  A.  S.  Hayden,  Wm. 
Baxter,  Isaac  Errett,  Thomas  Munnell, 
O.  A.  Burgess,  Alexander  Proctor,  J.  A. 
Brooks,  J.  S.  Lamar,  Joseph  King,  David 
Walk,  W.  T.  Moore,  J.  S.  Sweeney,  and 
T.  P.  Haley.    To  these  men  and  many 


282      The  Disciples  of  Christ 


others  like  them,  the  churches  owed  theii 
deeper  and  broader  development  in  Chris- 
tian faith  and  beneficence,  as  well  as  their 
gradual  increase  in  membership  and  in- 
fluence in  the  community.  They  were 
succeeded  by  a  younger  generation  of 
pastors,  equally  worthy  and  successful, 
such  as  B.  B.  Tyler,  J.  Z.  Tyler,  R.  T. 
Matthews,  F.  D.  Power,  J.  M.  Trible, 
A.  1.  Hobbs,  George  Darsie,  A.  N.  Gilbert, 
Jabez  Hall,  J.  J.  Haley,  I.  J.  Spencer,  and 
D.  R.  Lucas.  Connected  with  the  transi- 
tion from  the  earlier  evangelistic  to  the 
later  pastoral  ministry,  was  a  form  of 
specialization  or  division  of  labor  between 
the  pastor  and  evangelist.  It  was  recog- 
nized that  the  two  kinds  of  service — the 
enlisting  of  converts,  and  the  training  of 
converts — called  for  two  kinds  of  talent, 
not  often  joined  in  a  high  degree  in  the 
same  person.  Hence  arose  the  "profes- 
sional evangelist,'"  who  was  especially 
qualified  to  hold  "protracted  meetings," 


Evangelism,  Journalism,  Education  283 

and  did  little  else.  One  of  the  earliest, 
greatest  and  most  honored  of  this  type 
of  evangelist  was  Knowles  Shaw.  He 
was  born  in  Ohio  in  1834,  and  was  killed 
in  a  railroad  wreck  in  Texas,  in  1878.  He 
was  gifted  with  rare  musical  talent,  which 
in  youth  he  used  to  enliven  social  gather- 
ings in  the  neighborhood  of  his  home,  but 
in  later  life  used  with  marvellous  power 
in  revival  meetings.  He  was  preacher  and 
singing  evangelist  in  one.  In  his  most 
successful  meetings  he  had  as  many  as 
two  hundred  and  fifty  conversions  in  the 
course  of  four  or  five  weeks.  More  recent 
evangelists  of  the  type  of  Knowles  Shaw, 
such  as  J.  V.  Updike,  H.  A.  Northcutt, 
J.  H.  O.  Smith,  J.  V.  Coombs,  Chas.  Reign 
Scoville,  Allen  Wilson,  and  W.  E.  Harlow, 
have  been  even  more  successful — the  num- 
ber of  converts  in  a  single  meeting  some- 
times surpassing  four  or  five  hundred. 

While  the  evangelism  of  the  Disciples 
has  had  its  most  direct  bearings  upon  their 


284      The  Disciples  of  Christ 


growth,  yet  it  has  influenced  to  a  remark- 
able degree  the  character  of  their  literature. 
The  bulk  of  their  literature  consists  of  books 
of  sermons  and  tracts.  The  Disciples  have 
never  forgotten  that  they  were  propagand- 
ists of  ''peculiar  views,"  which  have  al- 
ways furnished  them  with  texts  for  preach- 
ing and  writing.  The  printed  sermons  are, 
as  a  rule,  little  more  than  tracts  upon  the 
various  phases  of  denominational  doctrine  or 
practice.  A  few  sermonizers  have  attempted 
excursions  into  the  field  of  general  Chris- 
tian culture  with  some  success.  Aside 
from  Alexander  Campbell's  writings,  the 
books  which  have  been  most  read  are 
the  sermons  of  Benjamin  Franklin;  while 
more  recently  the  writings  of  Isaac  Errett, 
Robert  Richardson,  J.  S.  Lamar,  Robert 
Milligan,  J.  W.  McGarvey,  B.  B.  Tyler, 
A.  McLean,  J.  H.  Garrison,  W.  T.  Moore, 
and  F.  D.  Power,  have  been  widely  read 
and  have  exerted  a  notable  influence 
upon  the  movement.    Isaac  Errett's  tract, 


fivangelism,  Journalism,  Education  285 

Our  Position,  has  been  read  by  the  thou- 
sands and  remains  unequalled  as  a  state- 
ment of  the  position  of  the  Disciples  in 
relation  to  other  religious  bodies. 

Evangelism  has  also  deeply  influenced 
the  doctrine  and  life  of  the  Disciples.  The 
doctrine  of  assurance  through  obedience 
propagated  in  all  their  evangelistic  preach- 
ing, was  easily  understood  and  readily 
seized  upon  as  a  balm  for  a  distressed 
conscience.  The  satisfaction  which  was 
found  in  baptism,  and  in  the  scriptural 
guarantee  of  correctness,  loosed  many  per- 
sons from  the  inner  pain  of  spiritual  imper- 
fection and  gave  them  security  in  external 
obedience  to  commands.  It  was  this  legal- 
istic conception  of  Christian  duty  and  serv- 
ice which  partly  accounts  for  the  slow  re- 
ception of  the  missionary  enterprise,  and 
for  the  tardy  acceptance  of  the  duty  of 
social  service. 

Reference  has  been  made  from  time  to 
time  in  these  pages  to  various  periodicals. 


286      The  Disciples  of  Christ 


monthly  and  weekly,  which  have  played  so 
large  a  part  in  the  history.  As  promoters 
of  the  cause  without  and  as  moulders  of 
thought  and  leaders  of  action  within,  the 
editors  and  newspapers  have  stood  second 
only  to  the  ministry.  Alexander  Campbell 
was  the  first  editor  and  set  the  example  of 
an  efficient  journalism  in  the  Christiaii  Bap- 
tist and  Millennial  Harbinger.  They  had 
their  imitators  in  a  score  of  similar  period- 
icals before  1830,  and  from  that  time  to 
this,  scores  have  been  established,  and  have 
gone  their  way  after  a  brief  career.  They 
have  not  always  reproduced  the  best  side  of 
their  prototypes,  but  they  have  not  failed  to 
do  valiant,  and  often  militant,  service  on 
behalf  of  the  cause  they  espoused.  Every 
leader,  and  every  one  who  aspired  to  lead- 
ership, has  in  some  way  and  at  some  time 
been  connected  with  a  newspaper.  While 
at  various  times  they  have  been  the  instru- 
ments through  which  internal  feuds  and 
parties  have  been  created,  yet  no  great  mis- 


Evangelism,  Journalism,  Education  287 

sionary,  benevolent,  or  educational  cause 
has  arisen  and  succeeded  without  the  help 
of  a  journal. 

When  a  journal  has  grown  to  a  position 
of  universal  influence,  its  power  for  good 
or  evil  has  been  greater  than  that  of  any 
man  or  group  of  men.  They  have  conse- 
quently made  and  unmade  many  indi- 
viduals and  causes.  In  a  pure  Congrega- 
tionalism, such  as  exists  among  the  Dis- 
ciples, the  newspapers  came  nearer  being 
authoritative  oracles  and  tribunals  than  any 
other  organized  institution.  Two  papers  in 
the  recent  period  have  succeeded  to  the 
wide  influence  of  the  Baptist  and  Harbinger 
in  the  early  period — the  Christian  Standard, 
under  the  editorship  of  Isaac  Errett,  and  the 
Christian  Evangelist,  under  the  editorship 
of  J.  H.  Garrison.  The  Standard  was  the 
sole  product  of  the  spirit  and  genius  of 
Isaac  Errett,  and  was  the  exponent  of  a  more 
liberal  and  spiritual  order  of  things  until  the 
death  of  the  editor  in  1888.    As  the  friend 


288      The  Disciples  of  Christ 


and  advocate  of  missionary  societies,  instru- 
ments of  music  in  public  worship,  and  a 
more  cordial  relation  with  other  religious 
bodies,  he  fell  under  the  suspicion  of  being 
too  liberal.  He  drew  around  him  men  of 
the  broadest  spirit  and  some  of  the  best 
writers  of  the  church,  and  set  an  example 
of  the  highest  and  best  religious  journalism. 
The  simplicity,  modesty,  and  dignity  of  his 
character,  the  catholicity  and  unselfishness 
of  his  spirit,  constituted  him  the  greatest 
leader  since  Alexander  Campbell.  After  his 
death  his  paper  fell  into  the  hands  of  men 
of  a  different  spirit.  Men  who  had  op- 
posed Isaac  Errett  in  his  day  became  influ- 
ential in  the  direction  of  its  policy  and  spoke 
behind  his  authority  in  the  columns  of  his 
paper  upon  the  new  questions  and  problems 
that  had  arisen.  Upon  some  of  the  old 
questions  the  paper  continued  to  speak  as 
Isaac  Errett  had  spoken,  and  when  it  spoke 
upon  the  new  questions  many  people 
thought  it  was  Isaac  Errett  still  speaking. 


Evangelism,  Journalism,  Education  289 

Upon  all  new  questions  of  biblical  criticism 
and  denominational  policy  and  mission,  it 
has  tai<en  a  conservative,  reactionary  posi- 
tion. 

The  Christian  Evangelist  has  had  a  com- 
plicated ancestral  history.  After  the  con- 
solidation of  many  papers  in  many  states 
covering  a  period  of  many  years,  it  took 
form  in  1882  under  the  editorship  of 
B.  W.  Johnson  and  J.  H.  Garrison  and 
was  published  at  St.  Louis,  Missouri. 
In  1894,  upon  the  death  of  B.  W.  John- 
son, J.  H.  Garrison  became  sole  editor. 
The  editor  was  a  man  of  spiritual  vision, 
and  desired  for  the  Disciples  a  larger 
spiritual  life  and  a  larger  place  in  the 
world's  religious  work.  He  joined  hands 
with  Isaac  Errett  in  the  task  of  delivering 
the  body  from  legalism  and  a  narrow  sec- 
tarianism, and  of  promoting  every  mission- 
ary and  educational  cause  which  foretokened 
spiritual  emancipation.  He  has  consistently 
stood  for  larger  liberty,  for  hospitality  to- 


290      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

wards  new  truth,  and  for  the  practice  of 
Christian  union  in  every  form  of  coopera- 
tion with  other  denominations.  J.  H.  Gar- 
rison succeeded  to  the  religious  leadership 
laid  down  by  Isaac  Errett  at  his  death. 

These  journals,  with  a  multitude  of  others, 
have  taught  the  position  of  the  Disciples 
week  by  week  in  their  columns,  and  have 
defended  it  against  criticism  and  objection; 
have  opened  their  columns  to  the  advocacy 
of  the  various  missionary  societies,  educa- 
tional institutions,  and  benevolent  enter- 
prises, and  have  thus  unified  the  sentiment 
and  concerted  the  action  of  ministers  and 
churches  with  reference  to  them;  have 
chosen  and  guided  the  denominational  atti- 
tude towards  many  questions  and  its  policy 
with  reference  to  many  enterprises;  and 
have  been  indispensable  agencies  in  the  in- 
terrelation and  effective  workings  of  the 
various  organizations,  interests,  and  forces 
of  the  body.  The  influential  editor  occupies 
a  place  of  generalship  and  superintendence 


Evangelism,  Journalism,  Education  291 

over  the  widely  separated  parts  of  the  de- 
nominational army.  With  few  exceptions 
journalism  among  the  Disciples  has  been 
wise,  conscientious,  and  progressive,  and 
the  present  state  of  unity  and  efficiency 
among  them  is  due  in  no  small  degree  to  in- 
telHgent  and  responsible  editorship.  In 
1904  the  Disciples  were  publishing  twenty- 
seven  general  newspapers,  the  most  widely 
circulating  of  which  were:  the  Christian 
Standard,  of  Cincinnati;  the  Christian 
Evangelist,  of  St.  Louis;  the  Christian  Cen- 
tury, of  Chicago;  the  Christian  Compan- 
ion, of  Louisville;  the  Christian  Courier,  of 
Dallas;  the  Christian  Union,  of  Des  Moines, 
and  the  Pacific  Christian  of  San  Francisco, 
all  of  which  are  weekly  papers. 

Education  among  the  Disciples  began  as 
an  effort  to  supply  the  churches  with  an 
educated  ministry.  The  early  leaders, 
Campbell,  Scott  and  Stone,  were  educated 
men  and  recognized  the  value  of  education 
for  the  ministry.    The  emphasis  was  laid 


292      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

upon  the  minister's  training  in  the  knowl- 
edge and  use  of  the  English  Bible.  The 
study  of  theology,  as  usually  carried  on  in 
theological  seminaries,  was  held  in  small 
favor.  When  Alexander  Campbell  under- 
took the  task  of  establishing  a  school  for 
the  training  of  ministers,  he  founded  a  col- 
lege and  made  the  Bible  a  text-book  along 
with  text-books  in  the  sciences  and  arts. 
At  the  close  of  his  college  course  a  young 
man  was  ready  to  begin  to  preach  without 
any  further  preparation.  No  provision  was 
made,  and  none  thought  necessary,  for 
special,  professional  training  beyond  the 
college  course.  Theological  seminary  and 
college  were  merged  in  one.  Such  a  school 
served  the  ends  not  only  of  ministerial  train- 
ing but  of  general  Christian  education  for 
the  sons  and  daughters  in  the  families  of 
Disciples,  and  thus  made  a  double  appeal  to 
the  churches.  To  serve  this  twofold  pur- 
pose, Bethany  College  was  founded  by 
Alexander  Campbell,   at  Bethany,  West 


Evangelism,  Journalism,  Education  293 

Virginia,  in  1840.  With  similar  purposes  in 
view  Hiram  College  was  founded  at  Hiram, 
Ohio,  in  1830;  Butler  College,  at  Indianapo- 
lis, Indiana,  in  1830;  Eureka  College,  at 
Eureka,  Illinois,  in  1833;  Christian  Univer- 
sity, at  Canton,  Missouri,  in  1833  (the  first 
college  in  the  United  States  to  grant  women 
equal  privileges  with  men) ;  Oskaloosa  Col- 
lege, at  Oskaloosa,  Iowa,  in  1836;  Kentucky 
University,  at .  Harrodsburg,  Kentucky,  in 
i8s8.  With  the  removal  of  Kentucky 
University  to  Lexington  in  1863,  specialized 
ministerial  educ 'tion  was  begun  among  the 
Disciples  in  the  organization  of  the  Bibic 
College  as  a  separate  college  of  the  Univer- 
sity. Other  colleges  began  to  separate  min- 
isterial studies  from  the  college  course  and 
to  offer  specialized  elective  courses  which 
could  be  pursued  as  post-graduate  work. 
When  Drake  University  was  opened  at  Des 
Moines,  Iowa,  in  1881,  the  Bible  Depart- 
ment was  separated  from  the  other  depart- 
ments.   More  recently  the  Disciples  have 


294      The  Disciples  of  Christ 


established  other  colleges,  such  as,  Texas 
Christian  University  (originally  Add  Ran 
College,  located  at  Thorpe's  Springs,  but  in 
1890  changed  to  Add  Ran  Christian  Univer- 
sity, and  in  1895  moved  to  Waco,  where  it 
became  Texas  Christian  University);  and 
Cotner  University  established  at  Lincoln, 
Nebraska  in  1889.  Besides  these  leading 
institutions  there  were  in  1905,  thirty-five 
different  educational  institutions  of  ^Jl 
grades,  controlled  by  the  Disciples  or 
conducted  in  their  interest  or  under  their 
u^me.  in  the  United  States.  The  aggregate 
value  oi  their  property  was  $2,439,000 ; 
the  value  of  their  endowment,  $1,968,000; 
the  total  number  of  students  in  attendance, 
^,819.  868  of  whom  were  preparing  for  the 
ministry. 

In  spite  of  the  meagre  support  and  inade- 
quate equipment  of  these  colleges,  they 
have  been  one  of  the  most  important  fac- 
tors in  the  growth  and  development  of  the 
Disciples.    They  have  stood  close  to  the 


Evangelism,  Journalism,  Education  295 

churches,  and  have  met  their  first  and  most 
pressing  need,  in  giving  them  educated 
ministers.  They  have  demonstrated  their 
value  and  necessity  to  the  churches  by 
numbering  among  their  graduates  the  lead- 
ing workers  in  every  department  of  work 
— evangelists,  pastors,  teachers,  editors,  and 
missionaries.  The  leaders  of  thought  and 
action  since  the  first  college  was  founded 
have  come  from  the  colleges.  Many  fields 
of  work  are  always  waiting  for  the  coming 
of  the  properly  equipped  man.  This  is  true 
preeminently  of  missionary  and  educational 
work,  and  pastoral  work  in  the  larger  cities. 
The  quiet,  accumulative  influence  of  the 
great  teachers  of  the  colleges  has  never 
been  sufficiently  recognized  or  honored. 
To  the  first  generation  of  teachers  who 
have  had  an  incalculable  influence  upon  the 
movement,  belong  W.  K.  Pendleton,  who 
was  professor  in  Bethany  College  from 
1841  to  1887,  and  president  from  1866  to 
1887;   Robert  Richardson  who  was  pro- 


296      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

fessor  in  Bethany  College  from  1841  to 
1859,  the  biographer  of  Campbell,  co-editor 
of  the  Harbinger,  and  author  of  Office  of 
the  Holy  Spirit,  and  other  works;  Silas  E. 
Shepard,  who  was  president  of  Hiram  Col- 
lege from  1867  to  1870;  and  S.  K.  Hoshour, 
who  was  president  of  Butler  College  from 
1858  to  1861,  and  afterwards  professor  of 
modern  languages  in  the  same  institution. 

The  first  generation  was  succeeded  by  a 
second  generation  of  educators,  composed 
of  a  large  and  brilliant  company  of  men  of 
the  deepest  piety  and  consecration,  many 
of  whom  distinguished  themselves  first  as 
preachers  and  never  lost  touch  with  the 
pulpit.  A  few  are  still  living,  and  are  the 
last  connecting  links  with  the  pioneer 
days  of  education.  Robert  Milligan  was 
professor  in  Bethany  College,  1854-59; 
president  of  Kentucky  University,  1859-66; 
the  first  president  of  the  College  of  the 
Bible,  1866-75  (the  year  of  his  death); 
co-editor   of  the  Harbinger  and  author 


Evangelism,  Journalism,  Education  297 

of  the  Scheme  of  Redemption,  Reason 
and  Revelation,  and  other  works.  Robert 
Graham  was  president  of  Kentucky  Uni- 
versity, 1866-69;  president  of  Hamilton 
College,  1869-75;  president  of  the  College 
of  the  Bible,  1875-95,  and  professor  of 
philosophy  in  the  College  of  Arts  until 
1898.  He  died  in  1901.  James  A.  Garfield 
was  a  teacher  in  Hiram  College  with  brief 
intermissions,  1852-66.  He  died  as  presi- 
dent of  the  United  States  in  i88r.  B.  A. 
Hinsdale  was  president  of  Hiram  College, 
1870-82;  superintendent  of  schools  in 
Cleveland,  1882-86;  professor  in  the  Uni- 
versity of  Michigan,  1888  to  the  time  of  his 
death  in  1900.  George  T.  Carpenter  was 
president  of  Oskaloosa  College,  1861-81; 
organizer  and  chancellor  of  Drake  Univer- 
sity, 1881-93.  J.  M.  Atwaterwas  president 
of  Hiram  College,  1868-70,  and  served  as 
professor  for  longer  or  shorter  periods  in 
Eureka  College  and  other  institutions  and 
died   in    1900.    H.   W.   Everest   was  a 


298      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

teacher  in  Hiram  College,  1835-62;  presi- 
dent of  Eureka  College,  1864-72,  and 
1877-81;  president  of  Butler  College, 
1881-86;  dean  of  the  College  of  the  Bible, 
Drake  University,  from  1897  to  his  death  in 
1900.  He  was  the  author  of  a  book  on  the 
evidences  of  Christianity  called  The  Di- 
vine Demonstration.  D.  R.  Dungan  was 
professor  in  the  Bible  Department,  Drake 
University,  1883-90;  president  of  Cotner 
University,  1890-96.  He  is  still  living  and 
is  dean  of  the  Bible  Department  of  Drake 
University.  He  is  the  author  of  several 
books,  the  best  known  of  which  is,  On  the 
Rock.  J.  W.  McGarvey  is  still  living  and 
has  been  connected  with  the  Bible  College, 
as  professor  from  1865  to  1895,  and  as  pres- 
ident from  1895  to  the  present  time.  He  is 
the  author  of  Commentary  on  the  Acts,  and 
other  works  on  biblical  criticism.  B.  J. 
Radford  was  professor  in  Eureka  College 
and  part  of  the  time  president,  1870-81; 
president  of  Drake  University,  1882-83;  ard 


Evangelism,  Journalism,  Education  299 

professor  in  Eureka  College  from  1892  lo 
the  present  time.  C.  L.  Loos  was  presi- 
dent of  Eureka  College,  1857-58;  professor 
in  Bethany  College,  1858-80;  president  of 
Kentucky  University,  1880-97;  ^"d  pro- 
fessor in  the  same  institution  from  1897  to 
the  present  time. 

Evangelism,  journalism,  and  education 
have  had  principally  to  do  with  the  growth, 
the  present  state  and  character,  of  the  Dis- 
ciples of  Christ.  The  growth  of  the  body 
was  assured  from  the  beginning  of  its 
separate  existence.  In  1850  the  number  of 
communicants,  as  given  by  unfriendly 
calculators,  was  118,000,  while  the  Congre- 
gationalists  numbered  197,000;  in  1870  the 
Disciples  numbered  450,000,  the  Congrega- 
tionalists,  306,000;  in  1880,  the  Disciples 
591,000,  the  Congregationalists,  384,000; 
in  1890,  the  Disciples,  641,000,  the  Congre- 
gationalists, 512,000;  in  1900,  the  Disciples, 
1,118,000,  the  Congregationalists,  628,234. 
In  1850  the  Congregationalists  numbered 


300      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

about  twice  as  many  communicants  as  the 
Disciples;  in  1900  the  position  of  the  two 
bodies  was  exactly  reversed.  The  Congre- 
gationalists  are  chosen  for  comparison  with 
the  Disciples  because  the  two  bodies  have 
many  resemblances,  both  in  doctrine  and 
organization,  and  have  occupied  the  same 
territory. 

The  Disciples  have  churches  in  every 
state  of  the  Union  but  one  (1904)— New 
Hampshire,  with  the  possible  addition  of 
Nevada.  They  are  most  numerous  in  Mis- 
souri (1,710  churches,  180,000  members); 
Indiana  (956  churches,  130,000  members); 
Kentucky  (910  churches,  120,500  members); 
Illinois  (815  churches,  120,000  members); 
Texas  (780  churches,  93,000  members); 
Tennessee  (562  churches,  52,300  members); 
Ohio  (558  churches,  85,500  members) ;  Iowa 
(501  churches,  57,000  members).  They  are 
weakest  in  the  New  England  and  eastern 
states,  and  in  the  extreme  northern  and 
southern  states.    Their  strength  lies  in  the 


Evangelism,  Journalism,  Education  30 1 

central  western  states,  where  they  first  took 
root  in  the  early  days. 

Outside  of  the  United  States,  the  growth 
of  the  Disciples  has  not  been  so  marked. 
In  the  Canadian  Provinces  there  are  only 
158  churches,  with  a  membership  of  12,150; 
in  Great  Britain,  155  churches,  with  a  mem- 
bership of  14,000;  in  Australia,  235  churches, 
with  a  membership  of  17,298;  and  on  the 
foreign  missionary  field,  148  churches,  with 
a  membership  of  9,773. 

The  Disciples  began  as  a  movement  in  the 
country  and  smaller  towns  and  villages  and 
have  not  made  notable  progress  in  the 
larger  cities  until  the  last  fifteen  years. 
The  most  striking  gains  in  the  last  decade 
have  been  made  in  Washington,  D.  C, 
where  the  churches  have  increased  from  one 
to  four,  and  the  membership  from  600  to 
2,030;  in  St.  Louis,  where  the  churches 
have  increased  from  four  to  eleven  and  the 
membership  from  1,129  to  3,784;  in  Pitts- 
burg, where  the  churches  have  increased 


302      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

from  eight  to  eighteen,  and  the  membership 
from  1,494  to  4,345;  in  Kansas  City,  w  here 
the  churches  have  increased  from  six  to 
fourteen,  and  the  membership  from  2, 199  to 
4,600;  in  Des  Moines,  where  the  churches 
have  increased  from  three  to  eight,  and  the 
membership  from  1,500  to  4,420;  in  Chi- 
cago, where  the  churches  have  increased 
from  six  to  eighteen,  and  the  membership 
from  1,060  to  4,945;  and  in  Buffalo,  where 
the  churches  have  increased  from  one  to 
four,  and  the  membership  from  300  to  i,  107. 
The  American  Society  has  devoted  special  at- 
tention to  the  development  of  churches  in 
the  cities  during  the  last  ten  years,  under  the 
conviction  that  the  cities  are  the  key  to  the 
evangelization  of  America.  This  remarka- 
ble advancement  could  not  have  been  ac- 
complished without  the  leadership  of  an 
able  company  of  younger  pastors  who  have 
rendered  or  are  rendering  distinguished 
service  in  the  following  cities:  W.  F. 
Richardson,  in  Grand  Rapids  and  Kansas 


Evangelism,  Journalism,  Education  303 

Cily;  A.  B.  Philputt,  in  Philadelphia  and 
Indianapolis;  H.  O.  Breeden,  in  Des  Moines; 
E.  L.  Powell,  in  Louisville;  F.  G.  Tyrrell, 
in  St.  Louis;  J.  M.  Philputt,  in  New  York 
City;  G.  H.  Combs,  in  Kansas  City;  A.  M. 
Harvuot,  in  Cincinnati;  G.  A.  Miller,  in 
Covington;  T.  E.  Cramblett,  in  Pittsburg; 
E.  B.  Bagby,  in  Washington  City;  Carey  E. 
Morgan,  in  Richmond;  L  N.  McCash,  in 
Des  Moines;  W.  B.  Craig,  in  Denver;  F.  P. 
Arthur,  in  Rochester  and  Grand  Rapids; 
E.  W.  Darst,  in  Chicago;  Mark  Collis  and 
\.  J.  Spencer,  in  Lexington;  B.  B.  Tyler,  in 
New  York  City  and  Denver;  J.  Z.  Tyler,  in 
Richmond  and  Cleveland;  A.  C.  Smithers, 
in  Los  Angeles. 


CHAPTER  XIV 


RECENT  TENDENCIES  AND  PROBLEMS 

One  of  the  serious  problems  which  has 
exercised  the  minds  of  preachers,  editors, 
and  leaders,  during  the  last  quarter  of  a 
century,  has  been,  how  to  develop,  train, 
and  utilize  the  rapidly  increasing  strength 
of  the  churches.  The  churches  were  grow- 
ing faster  than  the  agencies  for  their  proper 
care  and  training.  The  tendency  in  this 
period  has  been  to  emphasize  Christian  cul- 
ture, moral  and  spiritual  growth,  alongside 
of  evangelism.  It  was  felt  that  evangelism 
had  overshadowed  nurture  and  education — 
that  quantity  had  taken  the  place  of  quality  as 
a  test  of  religious  progress.  The  churches 
were  growing  more  rapidly  in  size  and 
wealth  than  in  knowledge  and  beneficence. 

The  value  of  great  meetings  in  which 
there  were  large  numbers  of  additions  was 
304 


Recent  Tendencies  and  Problems  305 

sometimes  held  in  doubt,  when  the  churches 
receiving  such  increases,  did  not  show  a 
corresponding  increase  in  missionary  con- 
tributions. It  sometimes  happened  that 
after  a  year  such  churches  did  not  con- 
tain a  very  large  proportion  of  the  con- 
verts in  their  active  membership,  and  were 
even  weakened  in  their  hold  upon  the  com- 
munity. The  tide  was  rising  in  favor  of  a 
new  evangelism,  which  should  depend 
more  upon  instruction  than  upon  emo- 
tional excitement  to  produce  results.  Pas- 
tors began  to  fear  the  large  ingatherings 
into  their  churches  as  laying  upon  the 
church  a  burden  of  training  and  assimila- 
tion too  great  to  bear.  They  came  to 
prefer  meetings  which  edified  the  saints 
as  well  as  converted  the  sinners;  and  for 
this  purpose  the  safest  man  was  felt  to  be 
the  preacher  who  was  under  the  responsi- 
bilities and  understood  the  problems  of  the 
settled  pastor's  office.  Professional  evan- 
gelism   was    discredited    in    favour  of 


306      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

pastoral  evangelism.  It  became  a  veiy 
common  practice  for  pastors  to  exchange 
meetings  from  year  to  year;  while  the 
professional  evangelist  assumed  more  fre- 
quently the  pastoral  relation.  More  re- 
cently pastors  and  evangelists  have  come  to 
agree  to  eliminate  the  more  objectionable 
features  of  professional  evangelism,  and  to 
give  it  a  new,  but  somewhat  restricted, 
place  in  the  church. 

The  Disciples  have  eagerly  adopted  many 
modern  agencies  of  an  instructional  char- 
acter for  the  development  of  Christian  life 
in  the  churches,  such  as  Christian  Endeavor 
societies,  Reading  Circles,  Bible  lectures,  and 
in  some  few  instances,  Institutional  Church 
work.  More  and  more  they  are  beginning 
to  share  the  common  life  and  enterprises  of 
the  churches  around  them,  and  to  be  will- 
ing to  adopt  any  method  or  society  which 
has  been  found  helpful  to  the  larger  social 
usefulness  of  the  church.  They  are  sharing 
with  others  the  awakening  to  the  duty  of 


Recent  Tendencies  and  Problems  307 

making  the  church  a  factor  in  social  im- 
provement and  regeneration.  They  have 
ceased  to  raise  the  cry  of  "innovation" 
against  modern  methods  and  devices  in 
church  work.  One  of  the  most  recent 
developments  is  the  employment  of  women 
as  pastoral  helpers  in  the  larger  churches. 
A  school  for  the  training  of  such  helpers 
was  organized  in  1900,  by  A.  M.  Harvuot, 
at  Cincinnati.  After  three  years  it  was 
transferred  to  Drake  University. 

The  rapid  development  of  educational 
institutions,  with  the  rise  of  the  educa- 
tional ideal  in  the  last  twenty-five  years, 
has  forced  education  as  a  problem  upon 
the  Disciples.  They  have  never  competed 
with  the  older  denominations  in  educational 
equipment,  nor  have  they  kept  pace  with 
their  advancement.  The  state  institutions, 
with  their  inexhaustible  resources,  have 
made  the  problem  all  the  more  serious. 
The  colleges  of  the  Disciples,  after  apply- 
ing all  their  resources  to  the  first  require- 


3o8      The  Disciples  ot  Christ 

ments  of  the  literary  courses,  have  had 
nothing  left  to  devote  to  the  enlargement 
and  specialization  of  their  Bible  depart- 
ments. Liberal  conditions  of  entrance  to 
the  larger  institutions  of  the  East,  and  their 
immense  opportunities,  began  to  attract  the 
young  men  of  the  church,  and  before  1890 
a  few  had  crossed  the  Alleghanies  in  quest 
of  the  larger  educational  advantages.  Just 
before  and  after  1890  there  were  to  be 
found  in  Harvard,  Yale,  and  Union  Semi- 
nary, larger  or  smaller  groups  of  Disciples 
from  the  various  colleges  of  the  West, 
among  whom  were  Levi  Marshall,  John 
McKee,  W.  C.  Payne,  Clinton  Lockhart, 
H.  L.  Willett,  E.  S.  Ames,  Hiram  VanKirk, 
L.  W.  Morgan,  B.  A.  Jenkins,  W.  E.  Gar- 
rison, Baxter  Waters,  C.  B.  Coleman, — at 
Yale;  C.  C.  Rowlison,  Silas  Jones — at  Har- 
vard; J.  M.  Philputt,  S.  T.  Willis,  C.  A. 
Young,  A.  B.  Phillips,  Errett  Gates,  and 
L.  S.  Batman — at  Union.  The  contrast 
between  the  meagre  equipment  of  the 


Recent  Tendencies  and  Problems  309 

colleges  they  had  left  and  the  vast  equip- 
ment of  the  richly  endowed  institutions 
to  which  they  had  gone  filled  them  with 
pain  and  surprise.  It  made  every  man  of 
them  a  missionary  of  the  cause  of  educa- 
tion to  his  own  people.  Many  of  these 
young  men  gave  themselves  to  the  neg- 
lected cause  of  education  and  a  few  have 
been  called  to  the  presidencies  of  the  col- 
leges—H.  L.  Willett,  as  dean  of  the  Di- 
vinity House,  in  1894;  B.  A.  Jenkins,  as 
president  of  Kentucky  University,  in  1901 ; 
Hiram  VanKirk,  as  dean  of  Berkeley  Bible 
Seminary,  in  1900;  W.  E.  Garrison,  as  presi- 
dent of  Butler  College,  in  1904;  C.  C.  Row- 
lison,  as  president  of  Hiram  College,  in  1905. 

The  task  of  immediately  bringing  the 
educational  standards  and  equipment  of  the 
Disciples  up  to  those  of  other  religious 
bodies  seemed  an  impossible  task.  Yet  the 
demand  of  the  times  was  for  a  thoroughly 
trained  and  educated  ministry.  To  meet 
the  needs  of  the  immediate  present  for  the 


310      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

ministry  of  the  Disciples,  the  plan  of  co- 
operation with  the  larger  institutions  was 
adopted.  The  Disciples  in  California  were 
the  first  to  take  advantage  of  this  plan 
by  cooperating  with  the  state  institution 
already  established  and  equipped  beyond 
their  ability  to  equal.  The  funds  obtained 
from  the  property  of  a  college  which  was 
obliged  to  close  its  doors  were  devoted  to 
the  establishment  of  a  Bible  Seminary  at 
Berkeley,  in  proximity  to  the  State  Univer- 
sity. The  University  was  glad  to  have 
biblical  and  theological  instruction  put  in 
reach  of  its  students,  and  the  Seminary  was 
glad  to  be  given  the  privileges  of  the  Uni- 
versity. 

A  similar  yet  a  wider  purpose  was  served 
in  the  establishment  of  the  Disciples'  Di- 
vinity House  at  the  University  of  Chicago. 
In  this  instance  the  relation  of  the  House  to 
the  University  was  organic,  as  it  could  not 
be  in  the  case  of  a  state  institution;  and  be- 
sides taking  advantage  of  an  academic 


Recent  Tendencies  and  Problems  311 

foundation,  took  advantage  of  the  Divinity 
School  as  well.  It  was  an  effort  to  provide 
for  the  Disciples  professional  ministerial 
training  under  the  broadest  and  amplest 
provisions  which  Christian  munificence  and 
scholarship  could  create.  The  movement  to 
establish  the  Divinity  House  originated  with 
H.  L.  Willett  and  was  carried  out  in  coop- 
eration with  the  Acting  Board  of  the  Ameri- 
can Christian  Missionary  Society  in  1894. 

Eugene  Divinity  School  was  founded 
in  1895  by  E.  C.  Sanderson,  at  Eugene, 
Oregon,  to  take  advantage  of  the  State 
University  located  at  that  place.  The  school 
is  under  the  management  of  the  Disciples 
and  was  organized  primarily  for  the  train- 
ing of  men  for  the  ministry. 

The  Disciples  of  Missouri  established  a 
Bible  College  in  connection  with  the  Uni- 
versity of  Missouri  to  provide  biblical  in- 
struction for  the  University  students;  but  it 
has  gradually  grown  into  a  college  for  the 
training  of  men  for  the  ministry. 


312      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

Thus  by  a  succession  of  annexations  with 
the  larger,  older,  and  better  equipped  insti- 
tutions, the  Disciples  have  sought  to  meet 
the  educational  situation  which  confronted 
them.  There  are  evidences  of  a  rising  tide 
of  interest  and  devotion  to  the  cause  of  edu- 
cation in  the  denomination  at  large,  which 
is  destined  to  make  the  next  twenty-five 
years  preeminently  an  era  of  educational 
enlargement,  as  the  last  twenty-five  years 
has  been  an  era  of  missionary  organiza- 
tion. 

Modern  biblical  criticism,  which  had  ob- 
tained a  foothold  in  the  higher  institutions 
of  learning  and  theological  seminaries  of  the 
east,  and  was  disturbing  the  theological 
position  and  dividing  the  ecclesiastical 
councils  of  the  various  religious  bodies  in 
America,  began  to  receive  some  considera- 
tion from  the  Disciples  before  1890.  Not 
until  the  Christian  Standard  opened  a  de- 
partment of  "  Biblical  Criticism  "  under  the 
editorship  of  J.  W.  McGarvey  in  1890,  were 


Recent  Tendencies  and  Problems  313 

the  problems  of  the  higher  criticism  brought 
to  the  general  attention  of  the  Disciples. 
Professor  McGarvey  had  made  for  himself  a 
foremost  place  as  preacher  and  author  be- 
fore 1870.  He  was  one  of  the  group  of  in- 
fluential men  who  established  the  Apostolic 
Times  in  opposition  to  the  Christian 
Standard,  and  has  consistently  stood  in  op- 
position to  modern  innovations  to  the  pres- 
ent time.  He  fought  the  introduction  of 
the  organ  into  the  churches,  including  the 
one  in  which  he  held  membership;  and 
when  it  introduced  the  organ  in  1901  he 
withdrew  his  membership  from  it.  When 
the  new  problems  of  the  higher  criticism 
appeared  he  entered  the  field  against  it  and 
fought  its  progress  at  every  step  with  every 
weapon  of  argument,  ridicule,  and  innuendo. 
He  has  been  the  centre  and  brain  of  the  op- 
position to  higher  criticism  among  the  Dis- 
ciples. 

The  questions  raised  by  the  new  criticism 
were  entirely  strange  to  the  rank  and  file  of 


314      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

the  ministry.  The  Standard  committed  its 
influence  and  authority  against  tfie  newer 
critical  methods  from  the  beginning,  and 
identified  the  higher  criticism,  in  use  in  all 
European  universities  and  most  American, 
with  the  infidelity  of  Celsus,  Voltaire, 
Renan,  Strauss,  and  Robert  Ingersoll. 
There  were  some  students  among  the  Dis- 
ciples who  did  not  look  upon  the  higher 
criticism  in  that  light,  but  insisted  upon  dis- 
tinguishing its  principles  and  methods  from 
its  conclusions. 

The  first  voices  raised  in  favor  of  clear- 
ness of  distinction  and  calmness  in  the  dis- 
cussion were  those  of  J.  J.  Haley  and  J.  H. 
Garrison.  Many  articles  were  written  in 
explanation  of  the  principles,  purposes,  and 
workings  of  the  higher  criticism  to  moder- 
ate the  hatred  and  fear  of  it,  but  very  few 
were  written  in  espousal  of  any  of  its  con-^ 
elusions.  Those  who  did  venture  to  accept 
any  of  its  conclusions  which  contradicted 
the  traditional  opinion,  were  denounced 


Recent  Tendencies  and  Problems  31 5 

and  defamed  as  unsafe  and  unsound.  It 
became  nearly  fatal  to  usefulness  for  a 
teacher,  preacher,  or  newspaper  to  give  oc- 
casion for  being  read  out  as  a  higher  critic. 
In  the  case  of  a  teacher,  colleges  either 
cautioned  him  or  dismissed  him;  in  the 
case  of  a  preacher,  churches  and  his  minis- 
terial brethren  avoided  him;  in  the  case  of 
a  newspaper,  subscribers  stopped  it  and 
Sunday-schools  refused  to  buy  its  supplies 
and  helps.  Many  teachers,  preachers, 
newspapers,  and  even  colleges  hastened  to 
put  themselves  on  record  against  the  higher 
criticism,  for  silence  was  construed  as  con- 
fession of  guilt.  There  can  be  no  doubt 
that  several  publishing  companies  were 
materially  benefited  by  assuming  a  judi- 
cious attitude  against  it;  while  one  com- 
pany was  actually  threatened  with  disaster 
for  refusing  to  join  in  the  undiscriminating 
cry  against  it  and  for  employing  men  sus- 
pected of  leanings  towards  it  as  writers  in 
its  columns  and  of  its  Sunday-school  sup- 


316      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

plies.  Higher  criticism  was  the  question 
which  formed  parties  in  conventions,  in- 
fluenced the  action  of  missionary  societies, 
drew  the  line  between  teachers  and  preach- 
ers, and  divided  the  denomination  into  two 
more  or  less  clearly  defined  camps.  Out 
of  this  question  have  grown  the  new  con- 
troversies within  the  body  which  have  dis- 
turbed its  peace  and  harmony  during  the 
last  fifteen  years. 

The  first  controversy  which  drew  upon 
itself  general  attention  and  was  warmly 
discussed  in  the  newspapers  was  the  case 
of  H.  C.  Garvin,  which  occurred  in  1895 
while  he  was  professor  in  Butler  College. 
He  had  been  greatly  influenced  by  the 
new  ideas  in  his  views  and  methods, 
and  began  to  question  the  correctness 
of  some  of  the  doctrinal  positions  of 
the  Disciples.  The  question  which  came 
to  the  front  in  the  controversy  was  as 
to  the  priority  of  faith  or  repentance 
in  conversion.    He  expressed  the  opinion 


Recent  Tendencies  and  Problems  317 


that  repentance  preceded  faith  both  in 
the  teaching  of  Scripture  and  in  experi- 
ence, contrary  to  the  usual  teaching  of  the 
Disciples.  Other  opinions  of  a  heretical 
nature  from  the  orthodox  denominational 
point  of  view  were  drawn  from  him,  which 
aroused  the  opposition  of  the  authorities  of 
the  college  and  forced  him  to  resign.  A 
group  of  his  students  who  thought  him  un- 
fairly treated,  and  could  see  no  serious  de- 
parture in  his  teachings,  left  the  denomina- 
tion with  him. 

A  continuous  controversy  has  centred  in 
the  person  of  Herbert  L.  Willett  since  1894. 
He  sprang  into  prominence  as  pastor  of  the 
church  at  Dayton,  Ohio,  and  as  a  Bible 
lecturer  of  exceptional  attractiveness  and 
power  about  1894.  He  had  been  a  student 
at  Bethany  College  and  Yale  University, 
and  came  to  the  University  of  Chicago  as  a 
student  and  instructor  at  its  opening  in 
1893.  As  Dean  of  the  Divinity  House  he 
£ame  in  for  a  share  of  the  criticism  aroused 


3i8      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

over  its  establishment.  He  was  known  to 
be  in  sympathy  with  the  new  learning,  and 
his  influence  over  a  large  group  of  younger 
men  was  ^'eared.  An  unbroken  opposition 
to  him  and  the  work  of  the  Divinity  House 
has  been  waged  by  a  conservative  element 
and  has  involved  everything  with  which  he 
has  been  connected.  His  connection  with 
the  Christian  Evangelisi  drew  that  paper 
under  fire,  and  his  later  connection  with 
the  Christian  Century  has  involved  that 
paper  in  all  the  suspicion  and  opposition 
attaching  to  his  name.  An  attack  calling 
in  question  his  loyalty  to  the  teaching  of 
the  denomination,  was  made  upon  him  by 
the  editors  of  the  Standard  in  1901.  Cer- 
tain passages  in  his  book  on  Our  Plea  for 
Union  and  the  Present  Crisis,  in  w^hich  he 
set  forth  his  position  with  reference  to  the 
place  and  mission  of  the  Disciples,  were 
made  to  bear  a  meaning  not  intended  by 
him,  and  awakened  widespread  discussion 
and  bitter  criticism.    The  opposition  to 


Recent  Tendencies  and  Problems  319 

Professor  Willett  which  was  intended  to 
destroy  his  influence  in  the  denomination, 
has  only  partly  succeeded,  for  in  spite  of  it 
he  has  steadily  grown  in  favor  and  influ- 
ence and  in  demand  as  a  lecturer  upon  Bible 
themes. 

When  S.  M.  Jefferson  resigned  as  Dean 
of  the  Berkeley  Bible  Seminary  in  1900, 
Hiram  VanKirk,  then  instructor  in  the  Dis- 
ciples' Divinity  House,  was  selected  to  suc- 
ceed him.  Suspicion  rested  upon  him  from 
the  first,  coming  as  he  did  from  a  suspected 
institution.  He  was  growing  rapidly  in 
favor  with  the  Disciples  in  California  when 
a  group  of  men  opposing  him  entered  into 
a  conspiracy  in  1903  to  drive  him  from  his 
position.  Their  charges  of  heresy  were 
sent  to  the  Standard,  as  having  the  widest 
influence  in  California  and  reputed  for  its 
zeal  against  the  new  learning,  and  without 
investigating  them  published  them  and  sent 
hundreds  of  extra  copies  into  the  state  to 
make  sure  of  a  general  uprising  against  the 


320      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

Dean.  The  charges  were  denied  by  him 
and  laid  before  his  board  of  directors  for 
investigation.  He  was  cleared  of  the 
charges  and  retained  in  his  position.  After 
investigation  the  Standard  discovered  the 
groundlessness  of  the  charges  and  ac- 
knowledged that  the  persecution  against 
Professor  VanKirk  was  unjust. 

Another  Butler  College  professor  fell 
under  criticism  in  1898,  in  the  person  of 
E.  S.  Ames,  professor  of  philosophy,  on 
account  of  certain  utterances  made  in  an 
article  in  the  Nezv  Chrisiian  Quarterly.  He 
became  pastor  of  the  Hyde  Park  Church, 
Chicago,  in  1900,  and  shortly  after  published 
a  sermon  entitled,  A  Personal  Confession  of 
Faith.  No  notice  was  taken  of  the  sermon 
until  two  years  after  its  publication,  when, 
in  connection  with  a  sermon  advocating 
"Associate  Church  Membership,"  he  was 
denounced  by  the  editors  of  the  Standard 
as  a  Unitarian  and  apostate  from  the  ac- 
cepted teachings  of  the  Disciples,  and  pro- 


Recent  Tendencies  and  Problems  321 

nounced  unworthy  of  fellowship  among 
them.  The  church  of  which  he  was  pastor 
was  called  upon  to  dismiss  him  or  acknowl- 
edge its  agreement  with  his  opinions.  The 
church  took  action  in  a  series  of  resolutions 
declaring  its  loyalty  to  the  doctrinal  position 
of  the  denomination,  and  affirming  its  right 
to  liberty  in  local  church  government,  as 
well  as  in  doctrinal  matters  not  involving 
the  essential  teachings  of  Christianity. 

The  missionary  societies  did  not  entirely 
escape  the  influence  of  these  controversies. 
Moved  by  the  conviction  that  the  persons 
who  were  known  to  be  friendly  to  the  new 
learning  were  dangerous  to  the  well-being 
of  the  churches,  the  editors  of  the  Christian 
Standard  sought  to  commit  the  American 
Society  against  them  by  calling  upon  its 
secretary,  B.  L.  Smith,  to  sign  a  statement 
disavowing  all  sympathy  with  the  higher 
critics  or  disposition  towards  the  employ- 
ment of  such  persons  in  its  service.  In- 
spired by  their  success  with  the  secretary 


322      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

of  the  American  Society  they  turned  their 
attention  to  the  Board  of  Church  Ex- 
tension and  asked  its  secretary,  George 
W.  Muckley,  to  assure  the  churches 
by  a  public  statement  that  he  would 
have  no  fellowship  with  men  suspected 
of  sympathy  with  the  higher  criticism. 
By  this  time  many  men  of  influence 
thought  they  saw  danger  in  making  the 
missionary  societies  parties  to  theological 
controversies,  and  protested  against  the 
action  of  the  editors  of  the  Standard.  The 
Extension  Board  and  other  societies  con- 
cluded that  it  was  not  in  their  province  to 
pass  judgment  upon  the  orthodoxy  of  their 
servants,  and  that  it  was  not  in  the  province 
of  a  newspaper  to  require  it  of  them. 

These  controversies  have  been  the  nearest 
approach  to  "  heresy  trials  "  among  the  Dis- 
ciples in  recent  years.  There  being  no  court 
of  inquiry  outside  of  the  local  churches,  a 
heresy  trial  in  the  usual  sense  and  form  as 
carried  on  in  some  other  bodies,  has  never 


Recent  Tendencies  and  Problems  323 

been  known  among  them.  The  newspapers 
have  usually  assumed  the  functions  of  pros- 
ecutor of  errorists  and  defender  of  the  faith. 
Since  it  is  not  always  possible  in  such  trials, 
where  there  is  no  authority  over  the  accused 
to  secure  his  appearance  in  his  own  defense 
or  carry  out  any  decision  with  reference  to 
him,  heretics  prosecuted  by  newspapers 
have  usually  gone  unpunished  except  in  the 
suspicion  and  prejudice  awakened  against 
them  in  the  churches. 

Involved  in  all  of  these  controversies  was 
the  appeal  to  the  principle  of  Christian 
liberty  or  freedom  of  opinion,  which  had 
always  been  the  boasted  and  peculiar  pos- 
session of  the  Disciples.  A  larger  liberty  of 
thought  and  opinion  was  one  of  the  first 
principles  laid  down  in  the  Declaration  and 
Address.  Liberty  to  think  and  differ  with 
one  another  upon  many  truths  of  Christian- 
ity was  a  sacred  privilege  demanded  and 
accorded  by  all  the  great  leaders.  It  was 
felt  to  have  a  place  in  the  discussion  and 


324      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

settlement  of  the  new  questions  concerning 
biblical  criticism. 

The  discussion  of  all  the  learned  prob- 
lems connected  with  these  controversies 
was  carried  on  in  the  weekly  news- 
papers, and  laid  before  all  the  people  of 
the  churches  for  their  perusal.  It  was  felt 
by  many  persons  to  be  unwise  if  not  in- 
jurious to  introduce  the  technicalities  of  these 
discussions  to  the  unlearned.  As  an  out- 
let for  the  discussion  of  all  modern  biblical, 
theological,  and  philosophical  questions,  the 
Congress  of  the  Disciples  was  organized 
and  met  for  the  first  time  in  St.  Louis  in 
1899.  It  has  served  as  a  clearing-house  for 
many  of  these  controverted  questions,  and 
has  been  the  means  of  a  better  understand- 
ing among  the  conservative  and  progressive 
elements. 

The  Disciples  have  never  forgotten  that 
their  special  mission  among  the  various  Prot- 
estant denominations  was  to  teach  them  the 
desirability,  and  if  possible,  show  them  the 


Recent  Tendencies  and  Problems  325 

way  to  Christian  unity.  Their  own  anoma- 
lous position  as  a  separate  communion, 
looked  upon  as  a  sect  among  the  sects,  they 
have  never  accepted  as  justifiable  or  final. 
Their  separation  from  the  Baptists  they  laid 
at  the  door  of  the  Baptists,  and  would  not 
be  held  responsible  for  it,  because  it  was  a 
recourse  which  they  did  not  choose  and  never 
willingly  consented  to.  Since  the  separa- 
tion they  have  constantly  proclaimed  Chris- 
tian union  as  a  duty  and  as  the  goal  of  their 
mission  in  Christendom.  Many  conferences 
have  been  held  between  the  Disciples  and 
Baptists,  and  the  Disciples  and  Congrega- 
tionalists,  to  discuss  the  differences  which 
separated  them,  and  the  principles  and  terms 
on  which  union  could  be  consummated. 

A  conference  to  consider  the  union  of 
Baptists  and  Disciples  was  held  at  Rich- 
mond, Virginia,  in  April,  1866,  attended  by 
J.  B.  Jeter,  A.  M.  Poindexter,  VV.  F.  Broad- 
dus,  and  others  on  the  part  of  the  Baptists; 
and  W.  K.  Pendleton,  J.  W.  Goss,  J.  Duval, 


326      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

W.  H.  Hopson,  and  others  on  the  part  of 
the  Disciples.  Party  spirit  between  the  two 
bodies  ran  high  in  Virginia  from  the  days  of 
the  separation,  and  was  intensified  by  the 
publication  in  1854  of  an  attack  upon  the 
position  of  the  Disciples  by  J.  B.  Jeter,  in 
a  book  entitled,  Campbellism  Examined. 
Numerous  replies  were  made,  the  most 
elaborate  of  which  was  by  Moses  E.  Lard 
in  a  book  published  in  1857,  called,  A  Re- 
view of  Campbellism  Examined.  The  books 
were  not  designed  to  moderate  the  spirit  of 
opposition  between  the  two  bodies.  The 
proposal  which  led  to  the  conference  at 
Richmond  originated  with  W.  F.  Broaddus 
and  was  quickly  endorsed  by  J.  W.  Goss 
on  the  part  of  the  Disciples.  The  conclu- 
sion deliberately  yet  reluctantly  reached  by 
the  conference  and  published  to  the  two 
bodies  in  the  state  of  Virginia  was:  "That 
the  time  has  not  yet  come  when  the  Bap- 
tists and  Disciples  are,  on  both  sides,  pre- 
pared, with  a  prospect  of  perfect  harmony, 


Recent  Tendencies  and  Problems  327 

to  commit  themselves  with  any  degree  of 
cooperation  beyond  such  courtesies  and 
personal  Christian  kindnesses  as  members 
of  churches  of  different  denominations  may 
individually  choose  to  engage  in."  Similar 
conferences  were  held  in  different  states,  as 
in  North  Carolina,  in  December,  1868,  be- 
tween the  Disciples,  Free  Baptists,  and 
Union  Baptists. 

The  second  half  of  the  nineteenth  century 
witnessed  the  rise  of  a  notable  interest  in 
the  question  of  Christian  union  among  all 
the  larger  Protestant  denominations.  In 
1853  arose  the  Memorial  Movement  in  the 
Protestant  Episcopal  Church  which  was  de- 
signed as  an  important  step  "towards  the 
effecting  of  a  church  unity  in  the  Protestant 
Christendom  of  our  land."  In  1863  the 
"Christian  Union  Association"  was  organ- 
ized in  New  York  as  an  effort  on  the  part 
of  sympathetic  spirits  of  the  leading  Protes- 
tant denominations  "to  diffuse  the  great 
principles  of  Christian  union."    In  1864  the 


328      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

"Christian  Unity  Society"  was  organized 
within  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church. 
By  1880  the  Disciples  were  not  alone  in 
their  prayer  for  Christian  union.  The  appeal 
began  to  be  heard  in  all  the  denominations. 
The  Disciples  are  to  be  credited  with  some 
influence  in  the  revival  of  this  new  enthusi- 
asm, but  to  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church 
belongs  the  larger  credit  for  the  considera- 
tion Christian  union  has  received  in  Ameri- 
can religious  thought  during  the  last  twenty- 
five  years.  The  Memorial  Movement  bore 
fruit  in  a  Declaration  Concerning  Unity, 
promulgated  by  the  House  of  Bishops  at 
Chicago,  in  1886.  After  submitting  the  so- 
called  "Quadrilateral  Basis"  of  union  as 
the  essential  foundation  of  a  true,  catholic, 
apostolic  church,  they  closed  by  announ- 
cing: "We  hereby  declare  our  desire  and 
readiness,  so  soon  as  there  shall  be  any 
authorized  response  to  this  declaration,  to 
enter  into  brotherly  conference  with  all  or 
any  Christian  bodies  seeking  the  restoration 


Recent  Tendencies  and  Problems  329 

of  the  organic  unity  of  tlie  church,  with  a 
view  to  the  earnest  study  of  the  conditions 
under  which  so  priceless  a  blessing  might 
happily  be  brought  to  pass." 

This  Declaration  was  transmitted  to  the 
General  Convention  of  the  Disciples  which 
met  at  Indianapolis  in  1887.  A  committee 
consisting  of  Isaac  Errett,  J.  W.  McGarvey, 
D.  R.  Dungan,  J.  H.  Garrison,  B.  J.  Rad- 
ford, C.  L.  Loos,  and  A.  R.  Benton,  was 
appointed  to  draw  up  a  reply.  The  reply 
consisted  in  a  statement  of  the  princi- 
ples and  basis  of  union  advocated  by  the 
Disciples.  The  Episcopalians  submitted  a 
description  of  themselves  as  a  basis  of 
union,  and  the  Disciples  responded  with  a 
description  of  themselves.  Both  bodies 
submitted  bases  which  they  regarded  as 
"incapable  of  compromise  or  surrender." 
It  is  not  surprising  that  nothing  further 
came  of  this  correspondence  in  the  way  of 
"brotherly  conferences."  It  was  a  fore- 
gone conclusion  that  each  would  be  content 


330      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

with  nothing  but  the  absorption  of  the 
other,  or  a  remodelling  of  the  other,  after 
its  own  pattern  as  the  final  goal  of  a 
union. 

As  ended  this  correspondence,  so  has 
ended  every  correspondence  and  conference 
between  the  Disciples  and  other  denomina- 
tions looking  to  a  union,  except  the  con- 
ference which  issued  in  the  union  of  the 
Christians  and  Disciples  in  1832.  That  was 
a  union  by  agreement  in  doctrine  and  prac- 
tice. Yet  a  union  between  the  Disciples 
and  Baptists  or  Free  Will  Baptists,  has 
never  been  possible,  notwithstanding  their 
essential  agreement  in  doctrine  and  practice. 
The  poor  success  attending  the  union  ef- 
forts of  the  Disciples,  and  the  slow  accept- 
ance of  their  principles  by  other  denomina- 
tions, during  the  last  hundred  years,  has 
led  a  large  and  influential  group  among 
them  to  the  conclusion  that  something 
more  immediate  and  practicable  than  a  pro- 
gram of  union  by  doctrinal  and  formal 


Recent  Tendencies  and  Problems  33 1 

agreement  should  be  attempted  by  the 
present  generation.  It  has  resulted  in  a 
more  cordial  and  appreciative  attitude  of 
the  Disciples  towards  other  bodies,  and  in 
the  conviction  that  the  closely  related  de- 
nominations could  and  should  enter  into 
cooperation  with  each  other  in  many  social 
and  civic,  missionary  and  evangelistic 
movements,  which  would  not  interfere 
with  the  freedom  or  integrity  of  each 
other's  denominational  life  and  activity. 
They  have  rejoiced  in  the  growing  spirit  of 
fraternity  among  the  churches  in  recent 
years  manifested  in  the  various  union 
movements,  such  as  the  Young  Men's 
Christian  Association,  Young  People's  So- 
ciety of  Christian  Endeavor,  Sunday-school 
Associations,  League  of  Church  Federation, 
and  Union  Evangelistic  Meetings,  and  have 
freely  participated  in  all  of  them.  Many 
are  feeling  that  since  the  Disciples  have 
been  preaching  Christian  union  for  nearly  a 
hundred  years  without  tangible  results,  it 


332      The  Disciples  of  Christ 

is  time  now  to  practice  it  as  a  method  of 
promotion. 

There  has  come  to  some  of  the  best 
spirits  of  the  denomination  a  new  and  in- 
tense appreciation  of  its  mission  as  a  Chris- 
tian union  movement.  They  feel  that  its 
chief  justification  for  existence  as  a  separate 
body  Hes  in  what  it  can  contribute  towards 
the  union  of  Christians  in  this  generation. 
They  are  not  content  to  wait  for  the  con- 
summation of  a  far-off,  ideal  union  in  some 
future  generation,  but  desire  to  prepare  the 
way  for  it  by  a  larger  cooperation  and 
freedom  of  relationship  with  other  bodies 
in  the  present  generation.  The  leaders  in 
this  reviving  sense  of  obligation  to  the 
principle  and  practice  of  Christian  union  are 
J.  H.  Garrison  and  Herbert  L.  Willett,  who 
are  doing  all  they  can  as  editors  of  the 
Christian  Evangelist  and  Christian  Cen- 
tury, respectively,  to  inspire  the  denomina- 
tion with  this  new  eagerness  for  a  united 
church.    There  is  no  disposition  on  their 


Recent  Tendencies  and  Problems  333 

part  to  abate  the  insistence  upon  a  return 
to  primitive  Christianity  as  the  principle  of 
a  true  consensus,  but  primitive  Christianity 
is  receiving  a  larger  meaning  and  a  new 
emphasis.  It  is  no  longer  held  to  be  in  its 
essence  a  form  of  public  worship  or  a 
method  of  church  organization,  but  an  atti- 
tude of  the  human  spirit  in  all  of  its  social 
relationships,  as  child  of  God  and  brother 
of  man. 

There  is  new  hope  for  union  in  the  in- 
creasing agreement  among  all  Christians  to 
regard  Christianity  as  something  essentially 
spiritual  and  ethical,  and  therefore  universal 
and  practical.  The  hope  of  a  universal 
unity  lies  in  the  spiritual.  The  one  lesson 
of  this  history  is,  that  the  letter  destroys 
unity  while  the  spirit  makes  it  alive. 


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Moore,  W.  T.    Living  Pulpit  of  the  Christian  Church. 
1868. 

Moore,  W,  T.    Life  of  Timothy  Coop. 

Power,  F.  D.    Sketches  of  Our  Pioneers.  1898. 

Richardson,  Robert.  Memoirs  of  Alexander  Camp- 
bell.   2  vols.  1868. 

Rogers,  John.    Biography  of  J.  T.  Johnson.  1861. 

Rogers,  J.  I.,  Edited  by.  Autobiography  of  Samuel 
Rogers.    1 88 1. 


Bibliography  337 


Rogers,  W.  C.  Recollections  of  Men  of  Faith.  1889. 
Shackleford,  John,  Edited  by.    Life  and  Letters  of 

L.  L.  Pinkerton.     1 876. 
Stone,  E.  \V.,  Edited  by.    Christian  Messenger.  1826- 

1844. 

Stone,  B.  W.    Autobiography.  1847. 

Tyler,  B.  B.    History  of  the  Disciples.    Vol.  XII. 

Amer.  Ch.  His.  Series.  1894. 
Williams,  J.  A.    Life  of  John  Smith.  1870. 
Young,  C.  A.,  Edited  by.    Historic  Documents.  1904. 


Index 


Abingdon  College,  223. 
Allen,  T.  M.,  206,  207,  248. 

American  Christian  ^Iissionary  Society,  The,  controversy 
over,  239  ;  organization  of,  259-262 ;  work  of,  262- 
264. 

Ames,  E.  S.,  308 ;  controversy  concerning,  320. 
Appomattox  Association,  action  of,  against  Reformers, 
164. 

Arthur,  F.  P.,  303. 
Atkinson,  A.  M.,  273. 
Atwater,  J.  M.,  297. 

Bacon  College,  220. 

Bagby,  E.  E.,  303. 

Baptism,  design  of,  108,  1 17,  170. 

Barclay,  Dr.  J.  T.,  262. 

Baxter,  William,  281. 

Beaver  Association,  resolutions  of,  against  Reformers, 
160-162. 

Benevolent  Association,  The  National,  274. 

Belding,  W.  A.,  215. 

Benton,  A.  R.,  329. 

Berkeley  Bible  Seminary,  310. 

Bethany  College,  292. 

Bible  chairs,  266. 

Biblical  criticism,  as  a  recent  problem,  312-322. 

Bowman,  J.  B,,  220, 

Breeden,  H.  O.,  303. 

British  Millennial  Harbinger,  227. 


339 


340 


Index 


Brush  Run  Church,  organization  of,  85  ;  immersion  of, 

90 ;  union  with  the  Baptists,  93,  94,  100. 
Burgess,  O.  A.,  281. 

Burnet,  D.  S.,  181,  189,  217,  239,  262,  281. 
Butler  College,  221,  293. 

Campbell,  Alexander,  birth,  10;  education,  11,  12; 
religious  discipline  in  home  of,  12,  13;  conversion, 
13  ;  at  the  University  of  Glasgow,  61,  62;  arrival  in 
America,  61  ;  licensed  to  preach,  86;  ordained  to 
ministry,  87  ;  marriage  of,  88  ;  immersion  of,  88, 
89 ;  disagreement  with  Baptist  doctrines,  95-99  ; 
debate  with  John  Walker,  106- 109 ;  attitude  to- 
wards Baptists,  100,  no,  112,  124,  127,  128;  de- 
bate with  W.  L.  Maccalla,  116;  attitude  of  Baptists 
towards,  120-124;  success  among  Baptists,  127- 
129  ;  withdraws  from  Redstone  and  joins  Mahoning 
Association,  139 ;  influence  over  Reformers,  156, 
157;  influence  over  B.  W,  Stone,  195,  196;  corre- 
spondence and  discussions  with  Stone,  196-199  ; 
contrasted  with  Stone,  209,  210 ;  debate  with 
Robert  Owen,  216;  debate  with  J.  B.  Purcell,  2i6; 
debate  with  N.  L.  Rice,  229 ;  defines  a  Christian, 
233  ;  position  on  missionary  question,  240,  241 ;  on 
slavery  question,  247  ;  death  of,  256, 

Campbell,  Thomas,  ancestors,  birth,  7  ;  conversion,  8 ; 
preparation  for  the  ministry,  9,  10 ;  marriage  of, 
10;  the  spirit  of,  14,  15,  26;  influence  of  Inde- 
pendents upon,  27-32  ;  union  efforts  of,  in  Ireland, 
27  ;  removal  to  America,  33,  34  ;  trial  of,  by  Pres- 
bytery of  Chartiers,  36,  37  ;  letter  of,  to  Synod,  37- 
40 ;  withdrawal  from  Seceder  church,  43 ;  plan  of 
Christian  union,  58-61 ;  a  Christian  unionist,  94,  209. 

Carpenter,  George  T.,  297. 

Challen,  James,  216,  217,  262,  281. 

Christians,  The,  the  name,  185  ;  union  with  Reformers, 
190-203;  difference  between  Disciples  and,  192; 
opposed  by  other  bodies,  194-197;  number  of,  204; 
characteristics  of,  209. 


Index 


341 


Christian  Association  of  Washington,  The,  origin  of,  44, 
45  ;  plan  and  purpose  of,  46-58  ;  81,  82, 

Christiajt  Baptist,  The,  1 1 1  ;  circulation  and  influence 
of,  121-126,  140;  publication  ceases,  183. 

Christian  Century,  The,  291,  318,  332. 

Christian  Evangelist,  The,  287,  289,  290,  291,  318,332. 

Christian  Standard,  The,  252,  256,  287,  288,  312,  313, 
318,  319,  321. 

Christian  union,  conference  on,  at  Lexington,  230 ;  as  a 
recent  problem,  324-337  ;  Richmond  conference  on, 
.325.  326; 
Christian  University,  293. 

Christian  Women's  Board  of  Missions,  264-267. 

Church  Extension,  Board  of,  271,  372. 

College  of  the  Bible,  293. 

Collis,  Mark,  303. 

Columbia  Bible  College,  311. 

Combs,  G.  H.,  303. 

Congress  of  the  Disciples,  324. 

Controversy,  missionary  society,  240-246 ;  slavery,  246- 

350 ;  organ,  250-253. 
Coombs,  J.  v.,  283. 
Cotner  University,  294. 
Craig,  W.  B.,  303. 
Cramblett,  T.  E.,  303. 
Creath,  Jacob,  Sr.,  138. 

Darsie,  George,  282. 
Darst,  E.  W.,  303. 

Declaration  and  Address,  45,  46,  49-58. 

Disciples,  growth  of  the,  299,  300  ;  in  the  United  States, 

299-301  ;  in  foreign  countries,  301 ;  in  the  cities, 

301,  302. 
Disciples'  Divinity  House,  310, 

Disciples  of  Christ,  The,  the  name,  185  ;  origin  as  a 
separate  party,  212;  parties  among,  233,  253. 

Dover  Association,  resolutions  of,  against  Reformers, 
164. 

Drake,  General  F.  M.,  226. 


342 


Index 


Drake  University,  226,  293. 
Duiigan,  D.  R.,  298,  329. 

Education,  Board  of,  276. 

Education,  291-299;  as  a  recent  problem,  307-312. 

England,  beginnings  of  the  reformation  in,  226. 

Errett,  Isaac,  215,  252,  255-258,  265,  268,  281,  284, 

287,  329. 
Erskine,  Ebenezer,  22. 
Eugene  Divinity  School,  311. 
Eureka  College,  223,  293. 
Evangelization,  Bureau  of,  263. 

Evangelism,  method  of,  279 ;  success  of,  280 ;  influence 
of,  upon  the  literature  of  the  Disciples,  284  ;  influ- 
ence upon  doctrine  and  life,  285  ;  a  new,  305,  306. 

Everest,  H,  W.,  297. 

Ewing,  Greville,  30,  62. 

Fall,  P.  S.,  129,  218. 

Foreign  Christian  Missionary  Society,  268-270. 
Franklin,  Benjamin,  221  ;  opposes  missionary  society, 
244,  245,  250,  251,  262. 

Gano,  J.  A.,  207,  208. 
Garfield,  James  A.,  297. 

Garrison,  J,  H.,  284,  287,  289,  290,  314,  329,  332. 

Garrison,  W.  E.,  308,  309. 

Garvin,  H.  C,  controversy  concerning,  316. 

Gilbert,  A.  N.,  282. 

Glas,  John,  27. 

Goodwin,  Elijah,  221,  262. 

Graham,  Robert,  252,  297. 

Green,  A.  B.,  215. 

Green,  F.  M.,  268. 

Haldane,  James  A.,  and  Robert,  29-31. 
Haley,  J.  J.,  282,  314. 
Haley,  T.  P.,  248,  281. 
Hall,  Jabez,  282. 


Index 


343 


Harlow,  W.  E.,  283. 

Hartzel,  Jonas,  215. 
Harvuot,  A.  M.,  303,  307. 
Hayden,  A.  S.,  281. 
Hayden,  William,  189,  215. 
Henderson,  D.  P.,  222,  281. 
Henry,  John,  188. 
Heresy  Trials,  322. 
Hinsdale,  B.  A.,  297. 
Hiram  College,  217,  293. 
Hobbs,  A.  I.,  268,  282. 
Hopson,  W,  H.,  252,  281. 
Hoshour,  S.  K.,  221,  296. 

Illinois,  beginnings  of  the  reformation  in,  221,  222. 
Immersion,  as  a  test  of  fellowship,  90,  124. 
Iowa,  beginnings  of  the  reformation  in,  225.  * 

Jameson,  L.  H.,  221. 
Jenkins,  B.  A.,  308,  309. 

Jeter,  J.  B.,  325  ;  his  work  on  Canipbellism  Examined^ 
326. 

Johnson,  B.  W,,  289. 

Johnson,  J.  T.,  138,  200,  218,  220,  230,  262. 
Jones,  J,  H.,  215. 
Journalism,  285-291. 

Kentucky,  beginnings  of  the  reformation  in,  217-220. 
Kentucky  University,  220,  293. 
King,  Joseph,  281. 
Knox,  John,  18. 

Lamar,  J.  S.,  268,  281,  284. 

Lard,  Moses  E.,  252;  his  book  on  A  Review  of  Camp- 

bellism  Exammed,  326. 
Loos,  C.  L.,  268,  299,  329. 
Louisville  church,  131,  132, 
Lucas,  D.  R.,  282. 


344 


Index 


Maccalla,  W.  L,  ii6. 

Mahoning  Association,  The,  123,  138,  173,  191. 
Mathes,  J.  M.,  221,  262. 
Matthews,  R.  T.,  282. 
McBride,  Thomas,  224. 
McCash,  I.  X.,  303. 

McGarvey,  J.  \V.,  248,  252,  284,  298,  312,  313,  329. 

McGready,  James,  66,  72. 

McLean,  A.,  268,  270. 

Millennial  Harbinger,  origin  of,  183-185. 

Milligan,  Robert,  284,  296. 

Ministerial  Relief,  Board  of,  273,  274. 

Missouri,  beginnings  of  the  reformation  in,  224. 

Moftett,  Robert,  268,  271. 

Moore,  W.  T.,  268,  281,  284. 

Morgan,  Carey  E.,  303. 

Mormonism,  connection  with  the  Disciples,  215,  2l6. 
Moss,  J.  J.,  215,  217. 
Muckley,  G.  W.,  271,  321. 

Negro  Evangelization  and  Education,  Board  of,  275. 
Northcutt,  H.  A.,  283. 

Ohio,  beginnings  of  the  reformation  in,  214. 
O'Kane,  John,  221,  262. 
Oskaloosa  College,  226,  293. 

Pendleton,  W.  K.,  262,  295,  325. 
Philputt,  A.  B.,  303. 
Philputt,  J,  M.,  303. 
Pinkerton,  L.  L.,  250,  362,  281. 
Powell,  E.  L.,  303. 
Powers,  F.  D.,  282,  284. 

Primitive  Christianity,  the  authority  of,  41 ;  as  a  prin- 
ciple of  Christian  unity,  41,  60;  missions,  an  essen- 
tial element  of,  236-238. 

Proctor,  Alexander,  281. 

Protestant  Episcopal  Church,  the  Memorial  Movement 
327  ;  Quadrilateral  Basis  of  union  of,  328. 


Index 


345 


Radford,  B.  J.,  298,  329. 
Raines,  Aylett,  218. 

Redstone  Association,  10 1  ;  opposition  in,  to  Campbell, 

104,  105,  138;  action  of,  against  Reformers,  160. 
Reformers  and  Baptists,  differences  between,  169-173. 
Richardson,  Robert,  217,  284,  295, 
Richardson,  W.  F.,  302. 
Rogers,  John,  202,  205,  206,  218,  219. 
Rogers,  Samuel,  204,  205,  224. 
Rowlison,  C.  C,  308,  309. 

Sandeman,  Robert,  28. 

Scott,  Walter,  evangelist  of  Mahoning  Association,  141- 
144;  the  preaching  of,  144-149,  193,  211,  215,217, 
262,  277. 

Scotland,  the  Reformation  in,  17 ;  patronage  in  the 

church  of,  19-21. 
Scoville,  Charles  Reign,  283. 

Scriptures,  the  authority  of,  40-58  ;  the  interpretation 

of,  235,  236,  255. 
Seceder  church,  origin  of,  17-23  ;  narrowness  of,  23-26  ; 

division  of,  into  Burghers  and  Anti-Burghers,  24 ; 

Old  Lights  and  New  Lights,  25  ;  in  America,  34,  35. 
Semple,  Robert,  120,  164,  165. 
Sermon  on  the  Law,  lo2. 
Shaw,  Knowles,  283. 
Shepherd,  Silas  E.,  296. 
Smith,  B.  L,,  263,  321. 
Smith,  C.  C,  275. 
Smith,  J.  H.  O.,  283. 

Smith,  John,  132-137,  200,  202,  2l8,  219. 

Smithers,  A.  C,  303. 
Spencer,  L  J,,  282,  303. 

Springfield  Presbytery,  74;  Last  Will  and  Testament 
of.  75- 

Stone,  Barton  W.,  birth,  64  ;  education,  66 ;  conversion, 
66-68 ;  theological  difficulties,  70,  7 1  ;  doctrinal 
beliefs,  73-76;  withdrawal  from  Presbyterian 
Church,  74;  immersion,  77,  191,  222. 


346 


Index 


Sweeney,  J.  S.,  281. 

Tate's  Creek  Association,  action  of,  against  Reform- 
ers, 162,  163, 
Texas  Christian  University,  294. 
Trible,  J.  M.,  282. 
Tyler,  B.  B.,  268,  282,  284,  303. 
Tyler,  J.  Z.,  282,  303. 
Tyrrell,  F.  G.,  303. 

Updike,  J.  V.,  283. 

Van  Kirk,  Hiram,  308,  309  ;  controversy  concerning, 
319,  320. 

Walk,  David,  281. 
Walker,  John,  31. 
Walker,  John,  debate  with,  106. 
Wilkes,  L.  B.,  281. 

Willett,  H.  L.,  266,  308,  309,311;  controversy  concern- 
ing, 317,  332, 
Wilson,  Allen,  283. 

Yearly  Meetings,  origin  of,  181,  182,  217,  218. 
Young,  C.  A.,  266,  308. 


THE    STORY    OF    THE  CHURCHES 


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r"' 

/  

